Our University alumni, every year is a year of service.
Whether they are helping in their child’s classroom, serving at a church meal program or building homes in a far-off land, Westfield State alumni have a firm grasp on the importance of giving back in their communities and giving back abroad.
What’s different about the year 2013 is that alumna Kelli Nielsen ’04, president of the Alumni Association, is calling on graduates to share their stories of helping others.
A busy volunteer herself, both locally and globally, Nielsen asks that, throughout the year, alumni email their stories – and photos whenever possible – to her at kellinielsen5@gmail.com with “Service” in the subject line.
The goal is to populate the alumni website with images of Westfield State alumni doing good.
I think this is a great idea, and hope alumni take it on.
Maybe the concept will even inspire graduates who have never volunteered before to get out and flex a little muscle for a favorite organization.
This issue of Focus has stories of alumni in service woven throughout.
In Class Notes, for instance, read about Bob Benn and Jack Mosko, both from the class of 1978, who, along with 10 friends from Westfield State, once again participated in a Jimmy Fund Walk in 2012 to raise money for the organization.
Read, too, about Daniel Smith ’63, ’68, an alum who has been giving of himself in service since he graduated 50 years ago.
Smith was honored this year with a Horace Mann Award for Public Service. He rightly says that people don’t get involved in public service to be honored for it; they get involved because they believe in the mission behind the service.
In the story on Page 10, Smith says: “Everybody should give back to an organization they’ve benefitted from.”
Many alumni learned about community service when they were students at Westfield State.
Giving back starts on campus, where there are many mentors and role models.
It starts with the members of the Board of Trustees and the Westfield State Foundation, Inc., who give their time and talents to ensure that Westfield State continues to excel.
It starts with President Evan S. Dobelle, who has a hand in everything that happens on campus.
And it starts with faculty members who know how to inspire.
Like Professor Julian Fleron, whose work has helped secure a $550,600 grant from the National Science Foundation (NSF) – the largest NSF grant in the University’s history. [See Page 19.]
It starts, too, with professors like Christina Swaidan, who proudly proclaims “I love learning,” in the story about her on Page 20. She is a motivator for service and social justice.
When I was at Westfield State, it was other students who inspired me to get involved in giving back. Their energy was infectious, and I took part out of a sense of camaraderie.
After graduation, I learned to follow my heart in community service and, over the years, I’ve been involved in my church, my children’s schools and with various organizations in Northampton and Easthampton, where I live.
What I give has changed. I used to bake cookies, rake yards. Now, I use my professional skills to help organizations tell their stories and raise money.
How are you using your gifts? What inspires you? Where are you giving back, and to whom? Tell us all about it.
Read more about the Alumni Year of Service on Page 11, and don’t forget to email your stories to Kelli! We want to hear them.
