Marked by the signature yellow vests with the Mormon Helping Hands logo, students from the on-campus Laie YSA 1st Stake met for the second consecutive month to do a Saturday morning service project–this time at the Kahuku Elderly Hauoli Hale–where students cleaned and wiped windows and screens for those in need.
“This project was a sort of kick-off project,” said Bishop Paul Staples of the YSA 4th Ward. “We’re going to be doing this twice a month and also hopefully have individual opportunities for students to serve throughout the week.”
A fairly new initiative, the stake has begun the push for service to back up the church-wide program powered by JustServe, said Staples, which is already widely in use on the mainland. He said he would like to see more of it here in Laie.
“Basically the purpose of it is to put service out there,” Staples said, “for anybody, not just for members.” JustServe.org is a website, available to anyone, in which people can post various types of service opportunities. Both members and non-members alike can visit the site, type in the zip code of the area they live in, and watch as dozens of nearby events and service projects pop up with all the information needed to join in.
“I was at a training meeting for work, and when I came home, Bishop was at my door telling me to come,” said Trevor Holloway, an undeclared freshman from California. “When I heard about it on Sunday, I wanted to come, but I didn't think I would be done with my training meeting in time.”
The group of student volunteers, donning the bright yellow vests and equipped with Windex and rags, circulated through the apartment homes of the Kahuku Elderly Hauoli Hale, knocking on doors, prepared to clean the windows as well as do anything else as directed by the homeowners.
Students said they most enjoyed meeting the people they were serving. “We met this one lady who invited us in and told us a lot about her life,” said Holloway. “She's an artist and she traveled a lot and got to interview Jimi Hendrix and John Lennon and tons of famous people.”
Holloway said he got to see pictures of the woman's life and surreal experiences, as well as her artwork and listen to her reminisce. “My favorite part was definitely interacting with the people,” he said. “They were all so interesting and they all have individual lives, individual stories to tell.”
But the purpose of the service goes beyond connecting with the people. As explained by the YSA 4th Ward service committee, this new push for church-wide service aims to clear up misconceptions of non-members, keep full-time missionaries actively busy during the day, and to reach out to less active members. Members are encouraged to serve without ulterior motives, answer any doctrinal questions as they arise, but first and foremost be there to offer a helping hand.
“I felt really good because we could help people, especially people who really needed it,” said Ari Perdana, a freshman from Indonesia majoring in TESOL education. “I feel good and happy to help because the true happiness is found in helping other people to be happy.”
Bishop Staples also encouraged students to serve on their own time, and said he finds it effective to invite specific students, who he thinks need the uplift, to serve, usually at Kahuku Hospital. “It's a way of sanctifying them and helping them appreciate service,” he said.
“I have them go to the hospital and they feed, talk, and serve the patients there, and afterwards I make them write a report on their feelings and I can see their lives are changed. They've become more humble, more teachable... Once they do service they feel so much better about themselves. I think service is good for self-sanctification.”