More than 600 Ambrosians working together for a bigger cause: serving the community at the 16th Annual Bee the Difference Day.
“Bee the Difference Day” is an annual event put on by the Student Government Association (SGA). It consisted of students, faculty, staff, and alumni of St. Ambrose working on surrounding neighborhoods to give back to the community.
This day is one of the activities that marked the beginning of Bee the Difference Month, when St. Ambrose University invites people to live out one of its main values: service. The month is based on everyday prayers and reflections, and calls everyone to embrace the idea of helping the community that surrounds the institution.
The “Bee the Difference Day” happened on November 5th and had students, faculty, staff, and alumni raking leaves from neighborhood’s yards, cleaning up streets, and engaging in a variety of service projects. (Photo by Sydnee Horstman)
Jack Day, the Director of Government Operations of SGA, said, “The Bee the Difference Day is a great opportunity for St. Ambrose to go out into the community and build connections with our neighbors. I also think any community service is also a great experience for us as students because it gives us a chance to be a part of something bigger than ourselves.”
Isabella Crawford, a sophomore from SAU, said that in her opinion, “It’s important to go out within the community and do our bit to help others and to give something back. It’s good to show our support and to help people do things they may struggle with.”
While planning for the event Day said, “There’s a lot to coordinate between promoting sign-ups, reaching out to the community, making phone calls, running the shirt design competition, ordering shirts, planning housing assignments, planning for bad weather, and of course running the actual event.”
Many students enjoy volunteering at BTDD, they make the most out of this experience while helping the members of the community. (Photo by Sydnee Hortsman)
Aubree Langan, a junior at SAU, worked in a house where both owners attended St. Ambrose before, and she said: “I really liked to participate in this. The gentleman that we helped clean his yard, brought us candy bars out, he had multiple tools that we were able to use, and besides all, it was nice to meet someone from the community.”
In the “Bee the Difference Day” groups of students had also a chance to interact with residents from Davenport area.
When asked about his favorite thing about being part of the “Bee the Difference Day”, Day said, “From where I stand, the best thing is seeing how many people choose to come out and take time out of their busy schedules to serve others. To me, that is the epitome of what it means to be Ambrosian.”
Although the “Bee the Difference Day” is over, the month continues. Besides the everyday prayers, November will be marked by “Giving Tuesday”, which happens on the 28th and consists of a global movement that pushes people to do something good who have the power to change the communities for the better. Following that, the “Bee the Difference Month” will conclude on December 7 with a campus-wide celebration of Saint Ambrose of Milan, the patron saint of the institution. Students, faculty, and staff are welcome to enjoy homemade breads, fresh honey, and soup. The celebration will end with a mass in Christ the King Chapel at 4:30 p.m.
