Thank you, Greater Grand Forks
The largest single-day volunteer event in the greater Grand Forks area, The Big Event is UND’s way of saying, ‘Thanks’
The Big Event keeps getting even bigger.
The largest single-day volunteer event in the greater Grand Forks area, the Big Event was held on Saturday, April 27. The mission of the event at UND is to foster goodwill and common goals among the students, the University and the greater Grand Forks community through community service initiatives.
The Big Event started in 2005, which makes this year’s the 20th in the series. And each year, the project has gotten successively bigger, with more volunteers participating and more service jobs being completed.
Last year’s event drew about 500 volunteers, the Dakota Student reported. And this year, “there were about 600 students who signed up to help with the 20th Big Event, which is really exciting,” said Kristi Okerlund, the University’s director of Student Involvement & Parent Programs, to a UND videography team that was covering the event.
The opportunity to give UND students a connection to our community is vital, Okerlund continued. Whether the participants help out at a private residence or an organization, “my goal is that our students learn something new about Grand Forks, that they may then choose to continue to volunteer with that organization and maintain a connection. That is one of my most favorite things about the Big Event.”
No job is too big or too small for Big Event volunteers, the event’s website notes. Volunteers serve at local churches, nonprofits and elderly individuals’ homes, in addition to many other locations. They rake, paint, pick up garbage, wash windows, work with nursing home residents, assist at YMCA youth events, ready local parks for summer, and much more.
Aaron Flynn is assistant director of Memorial Union facilities & operations at UND. “One of the things that we value at the University of North Dakota is service not only to the state, but also our local community,” he told the UND videography team. “So hopefully, we can work with students to make sure that the desire to provide that level of service and provide service to the community continues and finds new ways to continue and grow.”
Below is a selection of photos by UND photographers of the 20th Big Event. See you next spring!
