Children’s Theatre Dress Rehearsal

by Katie Lannan

When the Thriller dance, peanut butter and Oreo sandwiches and fake southern accents combine on one stage, it can only mean one thing: Children’s Theatre volunteers started going to site this week, after kicking off the program with a dress rehearsal Tuesday evening. The group performed their five original, hilarious skits, giving fellow BU students a taste of the performances that will be on tour at various community centers, hospitals and afterschool programs throughout Boston.

Each play is written and acted entirely by CT volunteers and includes both a moral lesson and a choreographed dance number. The rehearsal’s lucky audience of around 30 students was first entertained by a reminder of the importance of teamwork, as presented by giant cardboard fish. In the second skit, a young boy learns the merits of responsibility after a magical diary lets him swap out his strict parents for a more laid-back pair. The third group stressed imagination in an intergalactic adventure with a French Man in the Moon, alien robots and the shooting star superstar MC Protozoa, while the fourth taught healthy eating habits with a trip to a broccoli forest to save the Dairy Queen. The show concluded with the fifth troupe proving that school really does have something fun for everyone – including jaded Dolly Parton impersonators.

At the end of the dress rehearsal, program manager Matt Donnelly (who had an impressive cameo as Kanye West in one of the skits) encouraged anyone interested in becoming involved in CT to join next semester, as the group is looking to expand in order to meet more need.

What’s New with Afterschool

by Hannah Rabin, Afterschool volunteer

Edison is a middle school located in Brighton. They offer an afterschool homework assistance program called AIM which is where the BU Afterschool volunteers help out. The students are very social and welcoming to all the tutors;  I’ve even already picked up the nickname “Hannah Montana.”

On Wednesday, I was working with a student doing math problems using PEMDAS. After helping him with a set of problems, another student in the classroom asked me to help her with the same worksheet. I insisted that Henry, the student I was originally working with, help her out. They sat together and he worked through each problem with her – clearly showing his mastery of the PEMDAS questions. It was so great to know he really understood it, and could then help out another student. This program is new this semester and I hope it gains popularity – there are so many students there that could use our help. They are so welcoming and friendly and really appreciate every minute that we volunteer! I hope to see more of you there next semester!

Hunger Awareness Week

Hunger Awareness Week is next week, November 9th-15th!

• Monday-Thursday: Myles, Towers, Warren and West dining halls will be hosting Oxfam donation tables 4-8pm. You can donate one of your dining hall meals and the proceeds will go directly to Oxfam. Please donate your meals!
  • Oxfam is still looking for volunteers to help with the meal donation tables. Please email shinde@bu.edu with your availability if you’re interested in signing up for a timeslot, or come up to the CSC to sign up in person! Shifts are just one hour long.
• Wednesday, November 11th: 3 volunteers are needed 9am-12pm to go to Boston Rescue Mission to help prepare and serve meals.
• Saturday, November 14th: 7 volunteers are needed 9am-12:30pm to go to the South End with the Haley House to do a park clean up, and help make pies in the Haley House Bakery.
• Sunday, November 15th: As many volunteers as are interested are needed at noon for a bakery crawl to all of the bakeries that donate food to SFR. The crawl will stop at Clear Flour Bakery, Flour Bakery, Lyndell’s and Panera Bread and will leave from the GSU.

If you have any questions about the above events, contact SFR at sfr@bu.edu. If you are interested in attending one of the events, please email them with your name, email, phone number, and if you are van trained.

UPDATE 11/5 : Another event added to Hunger Awareness Week!

• Saturday, November 14th: Community Servings Pie Box Party, 11:30-3. Volunteers will transport food from the Greater Boston Food Bank and then make food deliveries.

Meet our 2009-2010 ASB Committee Chairs

by Jessica Owen

We asked the Alternative Spring Breaks Committee Chairs why they wanted this position, where their ideal ASB would take them and what they would do when they got there.

Marshall Gillette, Transportation Committee Chair

Hometown: Carlsbad, California

SAR 2010, Human Physiology

“I had an amazing experience as an ASB Coordinator last year and I wanted to get involved again this year in a more profound way because it is my last year at BU.”

Ideal ASB “would take me somewhere in America that I would never think to go otherwise and we would help restore and maintain sustainable ecosystems.”

Quincy Wright, Fundraising Committee Chair

Hometown: Bedford, New Hampshire

COM 2012, Advertising

“I wanted to dive head-first into ASB because I regret not volunteering during my freshman year. I wanted to make up for lost time while simultaneously working on a very exciting year for ASB.”

“I only have a couple of desires for my ideal ASB trip. First, it would have to involve service that truly offers an unobstructed view of the community we visit. Second, we would perform a job that truly made an impact and was extremely appreciated by the organization we work with. Third, we have a crazy amount of fun as a group while doing our service.”

Adam Azahari, Social Events Committee Chair

Hometown: Mahopac, New York

COM 2012, Public Relations

“I wanted to bring some of my experience to help an already amazing program grow even more. ASB and the CSC are both well known at BU and I thought this was the perfect way to get involved with both.”

“My ideal ASB would take my somewhere warm because the early part of BU spring semester is absolutely brutal. After that, I would say that any ASB that makes a great impact on the way we live is ideal.”

Dan Chizzoniti Public Relations and Advertising Committee Chair

Hometown: Long Island, New York

CAS 2010, Psychology

“I was a coordinator last year so I wanted a different experience while still being heavily involved with ASB.”

“My ideal ASB would take place in Sydney, Australia. We would work with an environmental organization to promote the conservation of energy.”

Alisha Cooper, Registration and Database Committee Chair

Hometown: Norwood, Massachusetts

CAS & SED 2011, Math and Math Education

“I knew that I wanted to be involved with ASB this year, and along with being a volunteer on a trip, I thought that helping out behind the scenes would be really fun. When I heard about the new committee positions, I thought it would be great for me to work with ASB for the first time by taking on a position that is also new to ASB.”

“My ideal ASB trip would take me to a school district where the majority of the students are performing well below state standards and are at high risk to drop out or not attend college. Volunteer work would involve tutoring and self-esteem building sessions that remind students that they can take control of their own future.”

This Week in the CSC

• Tomorrow 11/3 is the Children’s Theatre Dress Rehersal at 7:00 (not 7:30)  in COM 101! Come see the troupes’ skits (with a college humor twist) before they are performed for children across the Boston area.
• Wednesday 11/4 is MAPP’s Invisible Children Night at 7:30 in BU Central. Come see the groundbreaking documentry that exposed the lives of child soldiers in Uganda, and learn how you can help.
• Making Music, Wizards, the Communications Team, MAPP, Project Hope (on a limited basis), Student Food Rescue (as the program expands) and the new once-a-month program are still accepting volunteers.

And in other news…ASB is really getting started as all 70 coordinators start their office hours this week!

Next week:

• Hunger Awareness Week: SFR will be organizing two volunteer days on Wednesday and Friday. Stay tuned for details.
• OXFAM Food for Food tables: Keep your eyes peeled Monday-Thursday for our donation tables outside of the dining halls. Donate your dining hall meals to OXFAM and help fight world hunger!

Children’s Theatre Dress Rehearsal Tomorrow

It’s the event you’ve been waiting all semester for: the Children’s Theatre Dress Rehearsal!

When: Tomorrow – Tuesday, November 3 at 7:30 pm 7:00pm

Where: COM 101

2008 Dress Rehearsal

Come watch the skits that this year’s troupes have written, which will be performed later this semester for Boston area children.

Contact Program Manager Matt with questions.

What’s New with Siblings

 by Colleen Huysman and Kate Burnham, Siblings Program Managers

126 elementary school children.

126 Boston University students.

3 schools.

2 Program Managers.

1 Year.

This is Siblings 2009-2010! After receiving a record number of applications for Big and Little Siblings, we spent days matching everyone up in a mentoring pair! This year, we are working with 3 elementary schools in Allston. We are working with Winship School, Edison K-8 and Jackson Mann. This is our first year working with Jackson Mann and we are so excited to have them in the program! After we trained all of our Big Siblings, they have started hanging out with their Little Siblings three to five every other week!

 

This past Sunday, we hosted the annual Siblings Halloween Party! The Towers Franklin Lounge was transformed into Halloween Central complete with pumpkin painting, mummy racing, slime making, popcorn hands, spooky story-telling, face painting and a haunted room! Witches, Batman, cheer leaders, penguins, Transformers, gypsies, M&M’s and puppies all descended on Bay State to go trick-or-treating! The Brownstone RHA lined Bay State sitting on their front stoops dressed in costume awaiting the enthusiastic trick-or-treaters! We want to make a special shout out to Children’s Theatre, Student Studio, Wizards, Kate’s Mom, Aunt Mary, Brownstone RHA, the Community Service House, Dorothy’s, Shaw’s, Stop and Shop, Upper Crust, Boston Pizza and Grill, Boston Pizza Express and T Anthony’s for all of their generous donations of time, candy, pizza, decorations and more! We couldn’t have pulled off such a spectacular Halloween party without you! Everyone had a blast! 

If you have any questions or comments about Siblings, please email us!

Siblovin’,

Kate and Colleen

Once-a-Month Volunteer Program

The CSC is starting up a new once-a-month volunteer program for any interested volunteers, especially for those with busy schedules! Times, dates and events are extremely flexible. Program Manager Natasha is looking to fill executive board positions to help plan this new program.

Please email Natasha at bucsc@bu.edu for more information, or if you are interested in volunteering or joining the executive board.

Invisible Children & MAPP Event November 4th

ASB Coordinator Retreat 2009

by Dan Chizzoniti, PR & Advertising Committee Chair for ASB

This past weekend (October 24-25th), ASB took to the road for their annual coordinator retreat. The two program managers, five committee chairs and 70 coordinators did not let a little rain stop their service at a local farm called the Food Project. With hands covered in mud and feet sunken into the ground, the ASB team eagerly picked vegetables from the farmland. A hard days work resulted in a harvesting of 1400 lbs of carrots, 800 lbs of beets, 850 lbs of turnips, 1000 lbs of rutabagas, and 50 lbs of radishes. Their efforts provided enough food for 8,200 meals. What an accomplishment!

Of course, every coordinator’s favorite part of the retreat was receiving their trip assignment and meeting their co-coordinator. Watching the coordinators rank their trip preferences was nerve-racking. Lindsey Wyld-Kotowicz, the Director of the Community Service Center, says “I love watching students fight over community service. It warms my heart”

The ASB team is more excited than ever to plan the 35 trips and show even more ASB love for each other.