Nearly 160 Baptist Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine (BUCOM) students volunteered on July 31 at nine different community organizations in the metro-Memphis area during orientation. This is the third consecutive year of day of service activities for BUCOM students.
“We are proud to welcome the 158 students in the Baptist Health Sciences University College of Osteopathic Medicine Class of 2030,” said Latoya Windom, Ed.D., MBA, associate director of Student Affairs for Baptist University. “Our orientation included a day of service, and our students met the challenge across our community.”
Students volunteered at Catholic Charities of West Tennessee, Dorothy Day House, Room in the Inn, City View Towers, the YMCA of Memphis and the Mid-South, Youth Villages, Collierville Animal Society, MIFA and Elmwood Cemetery.
Students participated in different activities at each location. At Catholic Charities of West Tennessee, students packed food boxes. At Dorothy Day House, students helped clean and organize projects. Students led a creative service project at Room in the Inn, and at City View Towers students spent time with senior residents and provided entertainment through karaoke, bingo and board games. At the YMCA, students packed food boxes for children.
These types of community activities benefit others and are important to students.
“I chose Baptist University for their honest approach to holistic care for patients, which for me goes hand-in-hand with servant leadership,” said first-year BUCOM student Max Galvin, who volunteered at the YMCA to pack meals and snacks for children.
Students who volunteered at Youth Villages participated in recreational activities with children, and students who volunteered at Collierville Animal Services washed service trucks and provided companionship and playtime for dogs and cats at the shelter.
At MIFA, students played games with residents, and at Elmwood Cemetery they picked up litter that was on the street leading to the cemetery.
