A recently unveiled collaboration between Saints Student Athletic Association, Student Representative Council, Thames Students Inc., and St. Clair Alumni Association will focus on lending a helping hand to those in need of volunteers.
The Community Saints initiative began as a concept put forward by St. Clair President Patti France but has now taken form as a college-wide partnership of students and alumni ready to make a difference in the areas of Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent.
"Our Community Saints initiative didn't require creating that spirit, just organizing it,” France said. "The one course that we've never had to offer at the college is Civics. It just seems that our students, alumni and staff have an innate sense of what it means to be responsible citizens, to care about the well-being of their neighbours, and to make contributions to their communities.”
Recently a team of five volunteers from the Community Saints participated at the Summer Eats for Kids Day of Caring at St. James Catholic Elementary School. Angie Lopez and Shabham Sharma from SRC, Christian Seguin and Michael Beale from SSAA, as well as St. Clair’s Vice President of College Communications and Community Relations, John Fairley, were on hand to help the United Way aid in the distribution of food.
The Community Saints duties included event set-up and tear down, traffic flow, COVID screening, as well as front-line food distribution tasks. Fairley believes no job is too small for the new initiative to tackle.
“We are known as a community-based college and we want to make a difference in the communities of Windsor-Essex and Chatham-Kent,” Fairley said.
France encourages those in need of help with their event to reach out to the Community Saints. From student groups to skilled alumni, chances are that the Community Saints have the ability to answer the call and extend a helping hand.
"It is organized and ready to go,” France said. “Municipalities staging festivals, charities staging fundraisers, any group needing some help with its good cause: I hope your next call is to the Community Saints after booking your venue and your food supplier. We're eager to help in any way we can."
For consideration for participation of the “Community Saints” please contact John Fairley at jfairley@stclaircollege.ca