Around 1,300 students from Merrimack College in North Andover fanned out to nearly 50 locations across the Merrimack Valley region and Boston to provide community service during the school's annual "Mack Gives Back Day," Nov. 5.
Founded in 1947 by the Order of St. Augustine to provide educational opportunities to soldiers returning home from World War II, Merrimack College annually holds Mack Gives Back Day on a Saturday near Veterans Day as a way to honor those who have served by serving others.
Students participated in a variety of community service projects such as outdoor and indoor clean up at various locations, organizing the refrigerators, serving food at food pantries, and even painting a Christmas mural.
Dan Ulrich, a senior at Merrimack studying finance, spoke to The Pilot Nov. 8 about his experience with the day of service.
He said he works at the Campus Center, and he and his coworkers decided to participate in the service day together.
"We went into a piece of land that was donated to (Andover Village Improvement Society) by a contractor and we were clearing trails for the town," he said.
He and a group of about 50 people worked on the trails for three hours, Ulrich said.
"I think (Mack Gives Back Day) is a good way to come together as a community... We're really proud that our community is so great," he said.
"It was a really rewarding experience," Ulrich added.
IN OTHER NEWS:
No matter who won the national and local elections, we can all celebrate: It is indeed over, but
what does that mean?
To paraphrase a sports legend: It isn't over until it's over, so we can't just heave a contented sigh of relief and move on. Local discourse has been fractured, possibly forever. We have reached a new low in civility with physical violence sometimes a byproduct of all kinds of gatherings.
While each generation tests the limits of the previous one, I wonder if we haven't pushed beyond any limit in civil society. And where is the Church in this mix? It should be and is at the forefront, leading people to reflect on kindness, gentleness and mercy toward all, in all circumstances.
We are, after all, closing the Jubilee Year of Mercy this month. What better time than now to reflect on this year when parishes have developed and carried out ways to spread God's mercy to all those we meet -- except, of course, in the political arena, where we give no quarter.
Now, with a respite from voting for candidates, we can lick our political wounds and gird ourselves for the next "attack." I urge those considering that line of thinking to take pity on those who need a break; show us mercy, not because the issues are no longer important. The break I long for is from the venomous and destructive language used to describe opponents.
Now we are ready to see what steps our elected officials will take to fulfill their promises.
Read ore useful, helpful, valuable news as we move forward peacefully, cooperatively to heal the U.S.A. at:
http://www.thebostonpilot.com/opinion/arti...
Posted By: agnes levine
Sunday, November 13th 2016 at 12:36PM
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