TERRE HAUTE —
Braving the cold and a biting wind Monday afternoon, Whitney Maas and Maria Verduzco went door-to-door along the avenues in Terre Haute with fire safety tip fliers for residents.
The Indiana State University freshmen placed the information on door knobs as part of the Martin Luther King Day of Service, which is sponsored by ISU’s Center for Community Engagement.
About 400 volunteers were expected to fan out across Terre Haute, donating their time to benefit about 16 community agencies.
Maas and Verduzco were among several students who went to three neighborhoods distributing the door hangers on behalf of the American Red Cross, Wabash Valley Chapter.
“It’s going good. It’s a little cold,” Maas said, as she and Verduzco walked a neighborhood near 14th Street and Fifth Avenue.
“We like to help out the community,” Maas said. Verduzco added, “It makes me feel involved.”
A Red Cross volunteer in a Ford Explorer was nearby, if the volunteers needed more fliers, warmth or some water.
Before going to the various agencies, volunteers gathered at ISU’s Dede I, where they received lunch and also heard a short program.
Nancy Rogers, ISU associate vice president for community engagement, told the volunteers, “I can’t think of a better way to honor King than through service.”
Volunteers included ISU students as well as community partners in the ISU Americorps program, said Heather Miklozek, associate director of the ISU Center for Community Engagement.
Volunteers would be involved in “lots of spring cleanup-type things,” she said. The MLK Day of Service is a national event, often described as “a day on, not a day off.”
One of ISU’s missions is service to the community, Miklozek said. “We’re trying to embrace that on a day when students don’t have class.”
Other volunteers gathered at Gary’s Place, a Christian safe house for teen-age girls with or without children; it is part of Light House Mission.
Gary’s Place recently moved to South 13th Street in a building that used to house Booker T. Washington High School. The program provides housing, basic needs, case management and life skills, as well as Bible studies, said Anastasia Fritz, director of Gary’s Place.
It currently has four residents but can house up to 20.
Fritz had her volunteers organize closets, disinfect toys and sort clothing donations, among other tasks. “It’s very helpful,” she said.
Among the volunteers were members of Sisters, Too. The ISU student organization has assisted at Gary’s Place before, said the group’s president Kiara Johnson.
“It’s always been a favorite of ours … to come help the girls out,” Johnson said. It goes along with what the group stands for, which includes “uplifting women,” she said.
Nearby, ISU freshman Elizabeth Tuttle worked in a family room, where she helped clean and organize toys. She is a 21st Century Scholar and also involved with an international service organization.
Tuttle said she didn’t know about Gary’s Place before, “but I’m glad I had the opportunity to come here.”
Sue Loughlin can be reached at 812-231-4235 or sue.loughlin@
tribstar.com.
Local & Bistate
Related Photos
-
Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis In you service: Indiana State University student Justin Morris places a hang tag at a home along Seventh Avenue in Terre Haute Monday afternoon. Morris was participating in the Day of Service by working with the Red Cross passing out fire safety information.
-
Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Sorting things out: Indiana State University students Shelby Pritchett, Jessie Phillips and Stephanie Binnie sort through donated prescription bottles at St. Ann Clinic Monday afternoon. The clinic can go through as many as 400 bottles in a week's time.
-
Tribune-Star/Jim Avelis Cleaning up: Indiana State University students Elizabeth Tuttle, Hannah Fisher and Jenny Delash clean toys at Gary's Place as part of their Day of Service on Martin Luther King Jr. Day.
Discussion
Volunteers fan out for Day of Service
About 400 participants donate time to 16 community agencies
- Local & Bistate
-
-
Illinois Senate approves sex education bill
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — A proposal that revamps sex education in Illinois public schools to include information about contraception and sexually transmitted diseases has cleared the state Senate.
-
Gregg pondering 2nd run for Indiana governor
INDIANAPOLIS — Former Democratic gubernatorial candidate John Gregg is pondering another run at the state's top job, but has yet to make a decision.
-
Illinois senator apologizes for Nazi remark
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Illinois Sen. Donne Trotter has apologized for remarks that compared a member of Gov. Pat Quinn’s cabinet to a Nazi.
-
Vigo County Jail Log: May 22, 2013
The following individuals were booked into the Vigo County Jail by area law enforcement on Tuesday and Wednesday, based on jail records.
-
Rose-Hulman professor researching ways to make homes storm safe
Tornadoes produce greater uplift forces than hurricanes, which can flatten homes such as in Moore Okla., south of Oklahoma City.
-
Group wants to connect downtown Terre Haute with the Wabash River
Fairbanks Park is underutilized.
The Wabash River is peaceful and inviting, but there is some concern about its cleanliness as well as pollution levels. Also, people can’t get on the river unless they have a boat. -
New conservancy district appoints first directors
Members of the first board of directors of a new lake conservancy district were appointed Tuesday by the Vigo County Board of Commissioners.
-
Vigo law enforcement signs Triad charter to protect seniors
Indiana Attorney General Greg Zoeller joined Vigo County law enforcement and community activists Tuesday to sign the county’s first Triad charter, becoming the 22nd Triad in Indiana.
-
Wabash Valley Red Cross wraps up Save the Day Campaign
The American Red Cross Wabash Valley Chapter’s 2013 annual meeting concluded the 17th annual Save the Day Campaign, and the results lifted the spirits of all who were involved.
-
Some Vigo roads washed out
Spring storms resulted in $250,000 in damages to roads in southern Vigo County, with costs including sand and labor to save homes near river bottoms, said county highway Assistant Superintendent Dan Bennett.
-
County Council votes $78K toward rail spur
County officials voted Tuesday night to make good on a 2011 promise to help improve a railroad spur just north of Terre Haute for Menard Inc.
-
Spring flooding damages future CSO holding lagoon
Flood waters from the Wabash River have done costly damage to one of the city-owned “lagoons” on former International Paper property.
-
Vigo tops state average for IREAD-3 scores
The Vigo County School Corp. exceeded the state average in the percentage of students passing the state’s mandatory Grade 3 reading test, IREAD-3.
-
Storms cause minor damage in Valley
Tuesday morning storms in the Wabash Valley caused thousands of Duke Energy customers to lose power.
-
Vigo County Jail Log: May 21, 2013
The following individuals were booked into the Vigo County Jail by area law enforcement on Monday and Tuesday, based on jail records.
-
UPDATE: Damage surveys show 2 weak tornadoes hit near Indy
INDIANAPOLIS — The National Weather Service says storm surveys show two weak tornadoes struck central Indiana.
-
Storm causes scattered Indiana power outages
INDIANAPOLIS — A line of thunderstorms that moved across Indiana caused scattered building damage and power outages for several thousand homes and businesses.
-
Kindergartner diagnosed with MD treated to a day with the fire department
“He’ll just never forget this day,” Stacey Manley said, a little bit tearfully, as she watched her smiling 6-year-old son Carter sitting happily in the captain’s seat of Fire Engine 2.
-
Casey, Illinois aims for another world record
The town of Casey, Ill., may soon weave its way into the record books as the small town with the most world records. After setting records for the world’s largest wind chimes and the world’s largest golf tee, Casey is now looking to become home to the world’s largest knitting needles and crochet hook.
-
Rose-Hulman projects will promote growth, learning for people with physical challenges
Life changed dramatically for college engineering student Drew Christy on Feb. 22, 2008 when he was involved in an auto accident and suffered a traumatic brain injury.
-
‘500’ gas stations being sold to Speedway LLC
After several decades in business, the area’s familiar “500” gasoline stations and convenience stores will soon be missing from the roadsides of Vigo and Sullivan counties.
-
Terre Haute woman faces 14 charges
A Terre Haute woman faces 14 criminal counts after her arrest Friday on drug-related charges.
-
Two adults injured in ATV accident
Two adults were injured Sunday evening while riding an all-terrain vehicle near Lexington Farms Subdivision off Moyer Drive in southern Vigo County.
-
Vigo schools’ medical claims down 4 percent
The Vigo County School Corp.’s medical claims were about $13 million over the last 12 months, down 4 percent from the prior year, said Diane Titchenell, an Anthem account manager that works with the school district.
-
2013 Government Directory now available
The 2013 Government Directory is now available.
-
UPDATE: 5 killed, 6 injured in I-70 van crash in Illinois
ST. LOUIS — A van carrying church members returning from a California gathering careened off of a southern Illinois freeway and overturned several times today, killing five people and sending six others to hospitals, authorities said.
-
2 children reported dead from Indianapolis fire
INDIANAPOLIS — Authorities say some autistic children lived in the Indianapolis condominium unit where a fire has killed two children.
-
Tighter Indiana drunken driving law seems unlikely
INDIANAPOLIS — Some key Indiana legislators say it’s unlikely that the state will any time soon go along with a federal safety board’s recommendation that the threshold for drunken driving be cut nearly in half.
-
Vigo County Jail Log: May 20, 2013
The following individuals were booked into the Vigo County Jail by area law enforcement on Friday, Saturday, Sunday and Monday, based on jail records.
-
Life-Size Ping Pong: Valley pickleball tourney draws large crowd to Brittlebank Park
It’s been described as “ping pong on steroids.”
Some people call it “life-size ping pong where you stand on the table.” - More Local & Bistate Headlines
-
Illinois Senate approves sex education bill
Jodi Arias: Death Penalty Would Cause More Pain
Looking for Love? Take the Prague Metro
Raw: Costa Rica Volcano Roars to Life
First Person: Baby Falcons on a New York Bridge
Today in History May 22
Raw: Japan's WWII Atrocities Under Fire in Seoul
Raw: Students Clash With Police in Chile
Oklahoma: Images of Devastation, Reunion
Crews Race to Find Survivors of Okla. Twister
Police Ram House to End Hostage Standoff
Reunited Dad, Son: 'We Just Praise God'
Tim Cook Defends Apple's Tax Accounting
Slow Pokes: Acupuncture Helps Sick Turtles
Raw: Aussie Zoo Shows Off White Rhino Calf
Moore, Okla. City of Reunions, Tears After Storm
Protests Outside Cincinnati IRS Office
Raw: New Video of Deadly Oklahoma Tornado
Lawyer: Feds Investigating Susan Powell Case
Families Begin Returning to Their Homes in Moore
Raw: Aerial View of Moore Tornado Damage
Shakira's Shocking Talent
Morgan Freeman falls asleep on air
GRAPHIC: Blood-Soaked Machete Killer Caught on Tape
Camera Captures Climber As He Loses Grip And Falls
Helen Mirren Meets with Dying Boy in Queen Elizabeth's Place
Crowd Chants '¡Si, Se Puede!' After Passage of Immigration Bill
DWTS Crowns a Winner
Demi Moore a Rocks Bikini at Harry Morton's Family House
Anthony Weiner: I'm running for New York City mayor
Kate Middleton's Dress Flies Up
VIRAL: Baby makes epic soccer goal
The Hangover Baby All Grown Up
Olivia Munn Flaunts Her Bikini Bod
Britney Spears Under Fire Once Again For Being A Bad Mom
Arias Tells Jury What She'd Do if She Gets Life
The all-new Xbox One
RAW: Massive tornado strikes Oklahoma
Nidal Hasan paid $278K while awaiting trial
