A group of students and staff members from Marian University volunteered for Saints in the Streets neighborhood clean-up sponsored by St. Anthony and St. Barnabas Churches. Kaitlyn Hellinger ’20 and Brittany Fahringer ’20 organized the Knights participation.
“Our group went to pick up trash, pull weeds, and rake leaves. We also pulled vines off of a fence across from the church.” Hellinger said.
For their San Damiano Scholar sophomore service project, Hellinger and Fahringer chose to lead STARRy Knights. For the project, they planned on organizing two service opportunities during the fall semester. Saints in the Streets was the first service opportunity to lead for the duo.
“We really enjoyed the day. It was a great chance to get to meet some of the community members and people outside of Marian,” Hellinger said.
Staff members who volunteered for the service project included Theresa Roberts ’15, campus minister for faith formation and evangelization, and Rev. William J. Stang C.PP.S., M.D., M.Div., M.A., chaplain. Indianapolis Mayor Joe Hogsett paid a visit to see the volunteers.
"It was awesome to see the community, including Mayor Joe Hogsett, come together to make our city a better place," Hellinger said. "Our goal was to clean the streets and make them look more beautiful."
As they cleaned up the area, some neighborhood residents came out to show their appreciation.
“It felt good to know we were making a difference to those who lived in the neighborhood.” Hellinger said.