WashU Serves has released volunteer dates and locations for Service Saturdays through 2026. These community volunteer days are open to WashU faculty, staff, students, alumni and all other community members.
Service Saturdays began following the tornado last May, as WashU staff, faculty, students and their family members came together to help provide relief to those affected by the damage. The chancellor’s office estimates that WashU members provided 1,148 volunteer hours, totaling $28,687 worth of volunteer time, according to standards set by the United Way of Greater St. Louis.
“We were blown away by how much desire there was from the WashU community to get involved and to get into the neighborhoods in St. Louis that needed it most — our team showed up,” said Maggie Brockmeyer, associate director of the “In St. Louis, For St. Louis” initiative.
The schedule for this year’s Service Saturdays is listed below and can be found on the WashU Serves webpage.
- June 13: East Loop Community Improvement District
- Aug. 15: Boys and Girls Club
- Oct. 17: Wyman
- Nov. 14: Foster and Adoptive Care
- Dec. 12: Doorways
WashU Serves benefit boths the WashU community and the local community, Brockmeyer said.
“WashU Serves is a bilateral, bimodal approach to both how we can get our WashU people in the community, as well as how the community can reach out and call upon WashU for help,” she said.
The “In St. Louis, For St. Louis” team also has been working on developing and promoting a volunteer portal to help community members find volunteer opportunities tailored to their expertise and interests.
This portal, powered by United Way, has the capacity to track volunteer hours as well, whether the participant signs up for a time slot through it or self-reports hours. It also will allow community organizations to post opportunities and recruit assistance from the WashU community directly.
“WashU is ready to step up and serve,” Brockmeyer said. “This entire platform and initiative are meant to make it easy for WashU to respond to the community and really get our people into where their hands, feet and expertise can make the most impact.”
