252 social clubs a day in the park The ladies of Shantih social club brought a new idea to light when they merged service projects and functions. Typically, clubs kept these two activities separate, but these ladies decided that did not always have to be the case. Shantih’s first experience with combining a service project and function happened a few years ago when they had their “Bowling for Soup” function. “We decided to combine a bowling function with a canned food drive,” senior Kristi Kridlo, president of Shantih, said. “In order to participate in the bowling, you had to bring at least two canned food items for the can drive. On Oct. 11, the members of Shantih had their second function with the purpose of serving others while still spending time together as a club. The function/service project was suggested by Shantih’s activities director, senior Katie Parker, who thought it would be a good idea to do a function for others, not just themselves. The service aspect of the function was for the club to interact with children from Searcy Children’s Home and local foster children. Members played games, tie-dyed shirts and ate pizza with the children. “One of our sponsors, Penny McGlawn, used to be the mom at the Searcy Children’s [Home] and I thought we could use that resource [to] reach out to the community and have a great time,” Parker said. The parents involved were very appreciative of the club and their efforts in providing activities to the children. “It was a way that foster parents could get a little break and a way [for us] to reach out to the children and show them some of the love they may miss out on in their normal dayto-day life, “ senior Farron Martin said. Martin said they were trying to do as many service projects as they could to benefit people from the community and keep Shantih aware of what they were really supposed to be focused on, which was God’s work. “The purpose of our club is service and love,” Parker said. “We think that is very important to be of service to others, and we focus a lot on that.” By adding service project elements, Shantih redefined the meaning and purpose of functions. “A function is a great time to bond with your sisters, but there are more important things,” Kirdlo said. “There is nothing like a smile of a young child, and we got a bunch of smiles that day.” Allison Weaver Shantih holds service project function
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