850 volunteers gather to serve Arkadelphia area during Ouachita’s semi-annual Tiger Serve Day

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September 28, 2015 - Kelsey Bond & Trennis Henderson

A total of 850 students, faculty and staff gathered Saturday, Sept. 26, at the new home of Ouachita Baptist University’s Ben M. Elrod Center for Family and Community to kick off the university’s fall 2015 Tiger Serve Day.

tsd1 The student-led initiative hosted each semester by the Elrod Center has produced more than 70,000 volunteer service hours since the first Tiger Serve Day was launched in 1997. This semester’s volunteers sported T-shirts featuring the TSD theme, “Serve Your Socks Off.”

The 850 volunteers divided into 100 teams and completed 105 projects for the semi-annual community service effort. Projects ranged from raking leaves, trimming bushes and cleaning out flower beds to painting, window washing, cleaning gutters and washing cars. The projects benefit families, schools and nonprofit organizations throughout the Arkadelphia community.

The Tiger Serve Day Leadership Team includes student leaders who manage publicity, teams, projects and logistics. Their service sets the stage for volunteers to make a difference during the community service blitz.

“The Tiger Serve Day Leadership Team is the backbone of this day,” said Judy Duvall, assistant director of the Elrod Center. “They are servant leaders with a heart for God and people.”

tsd2 "Being on the Tiger Serve Day Leadership Team has shown me how much preparation goes in to the day,” said Reagan Parsons, a senior biology major from Arkadelphia. “It's such a neat experience to go into the community and serve practical needs like Jesus commands us to.

“Tiger Serve Day is a great stepping stone that leads to further involvement in the community,” Parsons added. “It is by far my favorite day of each semester."

“The element that makes Tiger Serve Day successful is the people who have a heart for service and community,” said TSD logistics team member Jacob Jenkins, a junior Christian studies major from Benton. “If it weren’t for the teams that sacrifice their time and energy to serve, Tiger Serve Day would not be possible.”

"This day each semester is something I look forward to most,” noted Lainey Weatherford, a junior biology major from Hot Springs. “It's such a cool experience seeing the entire campus come together to provide an act of service to those who live in the community around us."