Working together to serve one God Social cl ubS BetaOmegaChi and Pi Theta Phi held a joint serviCe project where 100 students, with peanut butter and jelly sandwiches in hand, journeyed to Little Rock in hopes of sharing some food and the gospel with the homeless of the city. Junior David Thornton, BOX's devotional director, helped plan the project. "Throughout scripture, believers are called to loose injustice, encourage the oppressed, feed the hungry and be Christ in our world today," Thornton said. "Simply put, we were motivated by a desire to love all men in the same way that Christ showed his love for us." Outreach to the marginalized of society was a calling many clubs felt and included in their yearly activities. In order to show potential members that serv1ce was a huge part of their mission, BOX and PTP members invited all students who attended mixe1·s to participate. "To our very great surprise, over 100 students came," sophomore Bethany Reeves, one of PTP's service directors, said. "I expected to see 40 or 50 max, so it blew my mind when I rounded the corner of the Heritage to see so many willing to spend their Saturday spreading the love of Christ." Although Little Rock was only 40 miles away from Searcy, the culture in the inner city there was starkly different to the atmosphere found at Harding, and many students were shaken by the experience. "We had all enjoyed fun car rides and were in chipper moods, still laughing and joking," sophomore Caitlyn Greek, co-service director of PTP, said. "As we rounded the corner, there , lay five or six homeless men with their few belongings, sleeping, staring, wondering. They did not look scared; they looked hard. Withered. Pained. Some were quiet and looked contentto be alone. Most, however, looked as though they were starved for social contact and expressed their thanks for us being there." Roughly 1,800 homeless lived on the streets of Little Rock. According to Reeves and Greek, a big part of their motivation stemmed from the hopelessness expressed by some of these people they encountered. "Our goal that day was to be Christ to those homeless in Little Rock who live on nothing, perhaps for nothing," Greek said. "These are human beings who have been through more than what most college kids have experienced." Many of the students who helped with the service project had eye-opening experiences during their visit to Little Rock. While it was often easy to picture people in far-away places as destitute and in need, it came as a shock to some students to see people in such a condition so close to home. "Our mood changed dramatically as we began to think more deeply," Greek said. "I think' sometimes all it takes to change one's way of thinking is to witness someone else's way of life." Monique jacques 2 50 social clubs
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