Beavers Perform Service on Buenafication Day
A campus tradition, on Buenafication Day classes are not held while BVU students, faculty, and staff perform service in the Storm Lake and Alta communities.
An estimated 2,076 faculty, staff, and students from Buena Vista University, Storm Lake St. Mary’s School, Alta-Aurelia Community Schools, and the Storm Lake Community School District (SLCSD) participated in BVU’s 105th annual Buenafication Day, contributing approximately 7,000 hours of community service throughout the week.
On this day – which began in 1913 as “Hobo Day” – classes are not scheduled to allow BVU students, faculty and staff the opportunity to volunteer their time to spruce up campus, help people in need, and complete projects on properties of local public and non-profit organizations.
The day kicked off with an opening ceremony at J. Leslie Rollins Stadium on the BVU campus, before students departed for a morning of campus and community service projects. Activities included spring clean-up projects, interacting with residents at Otsego Place and children in classrooms, caring for dogs at TLC Animal Shelter, planting a garden at The Bridge of Storm Lake, and sprucing up local parks.
In the afternoon, BVU students packaged meals for families in the Storm Lake area. Many others contributed to the Sole Hope project by creating shoes and assembling medical kits for individuals in Uganda who suffer from a foot parasite called jiggers. The day concluded with outdoor activities and a "Buenafication Festival" at Storm Lake Elementary School.
This year, more than 50 BVU departments and student organizations volunteered throughout the day in the Storm Lake and Alta communities. The day was sponsored by BVU’s Office of Civic Engagement, Campus Ministry, and the Iowa College AmeriCorps Program.