Hundreds gather for Day of Service

Hinsdale Central High School senior Sophie DiPasquale isn't a member of the Red Devil Service Club, the flag football team or the Civics Club. But that didn't stop her from being part of this year's seventh annual Day of Service presented by the Red Devil Service Club on Oct. 26.

"I volunteer a lot," said DiPasquale, one of hundreds of students and community members who participated in the Day of Service. While other participants were part of Central organizations participating together, DiPasquale signed up on her own to be part of the event.

She was one of several students assigned to the Hinsdale Public Library, where she packed up packages for upcoming craft projects

"We put them together in a little box," she said of the paper shapes and other items needed for winter crafts. "It was a good way to give back to my community."

Volunteers also worked at the Northern Illinois Food Bank in Joliet, the Burr Ridge Park District's Halloween event, Sharing Connections in Downers Grove and the Hot Cider Hustle at Danada Forest Preserve in Wheaton.

Two volunteer events were held on the Hinsdale Central campus. In the cafeteria, volunteers worked to fill backpacks with socks, hats and other items to help those facing homelessness this winter.

Club Co-sponsor Lisa Sopiarz said the Service Club's relationship with the Backpack Project is longstanding. Along with packing the bags, Central students made about 300 scarves to include in the backpacks.

The main event of the day took place in the Central field house. From 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., 365 people, including students, staff and community members, prepared 5,536 meals for Feed My Starving Children. Since its founding in 1987, Feed My Starving Children has enlisted the help of volunteers to prepare more than 4.3 billion meals to fight child hunger all over the world.

At the Northern Illinois Food Bank, volunteers packed 6,000 pounds of food for distribution to people in need.

"That's super impressive," said Red Devil Service Club faculty co-sponsor Sara Pendergrass.

Pendergrass said the annual Day of Service was born out of similar events at other high schools. While the day itself lasts just a few hours, preparations begin months before, Pendergrass said.

"We spend a lot of time over the summer reaching out to organizations," she said.

Once the club has compiled a list of organizations and events in need of help, invitations go out to groups within Hinsdale Central. This year's participating groups included the boys basketball team, the baseball team, Business Professionals of America, the Civics Club and the flag football team.

The Service Club also is tasked with arranging transportation to off-campus work sites, and with raising money to cover the day's expenses.

Club Co-President Mia Herman said two fund-raisers are held each year, one of which pays for expenses related to the Day of Service. The other fundraiser generally raises money for a particular cause or organization.

Along with other service club officers, Herman spent her day overseeing activities in the field house. A senior, Herman has been a club member since her freshman year.

"This is the first club I joined when I came to high school," she said.

Herman said she likes being part of a club that serves many needs within the community, and she's been pleased to see the Day of Service grow each year, both in the number of people involved and the number and variety of causes served.

"As always, it was a really fun day. It felt really rewarding," Herman said.

"There's definitely a lot of need in our community," Pendergrass said.