Ah, community service...sounds like someone is up to some good! No, really, I admire the fact that you're taking time out of your day to go help someone or some cause that is in need. But why do we really do community service hours? Is it actually because we're good people? Or is is because we have to?
I remember in high school, I did community service hours in an effort to get some award or to make my college application look better. I washed laundry for homeless people when I was in religious education classes, and I collected cans outside of a grocery store for Key Club. I completed many community service projects, but the thing to keep in mind is that I had to do these hours. Whether it was to meet a requirement or boost how I looked on paper, there was always an ulterior motive. In college, it's pretty much the same thing; my sorority (and almost every sorority) requires a certain amount of hours per semester, along with all the community service projects that we do as a group. I know many organizations have these requirements. In my particular case, I did not rush until sophomore year, and in my year without a Greek organization, I did not do any community service hours or attempt to help out the community in any way.
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Now, don't get me wrong, I am all for doing community service hours and helping out. I've done my fair share of good deeds and gone above and beyond the requirement for hours. I think it's important that we serve our communities and those in them; however, I will say that I am not sure how many young adults my age would complete these projects without the structure or requirements these organizations allow. There are the occasional do-gooders that I've met; they are committed to a cause and they work to serve that cause all the time, almost dedicating their lives. These are the diamonds in the rough, the few among many. On the flip side, you have the people who don't complete their hours semester after semester, and they don't show up to philanthropy events. Whatever their reason for their lack of service, you can't force anyone to do anything so you surely cannot force them to complete their community service hours, no matter the consequence, but, for people like myself, being in a sorority has given me the opportunity to help out in the community and to do philanthropic work.
It seems as though there is always some type of philanthropy even going on in the Greek community. Whether it be a soccer tournament or penny wars, you know all the fraternities and sororities will be out there supporting each other through donations or food drives. Arizona State offers us many opportunities to get involved, my favorite being FSL Day of Service. Basically, you sign up and on some Saturday or Sunday you get assigned to a group randomly with other Greeks and you get bused to a location to serve the community. One year I worked at the Be The Match Walk/Run and another year I helped out at a women's shelter and home. On top of these events throughout the year, I also complete my own hours. My sorority also offers various ways to get involved throughout the year; whether that be signing up for smaller events like Feed My Starving Children or going to Walk for Wishes and raising money for wish kids in Arizona, there's always something or someone that can be helped.
In conclusion, even though we aren't necessarily going out and finding these opportunities on our own, and sometimes we are even required to be at these events, I don't think that it's necessarily a bad thing. I don't think we're all perfect people, and I think a lot of times we want to help, but we don't know how to on our own. Without these requirements, the people currently completing community service hours, would not be. Isn't it better to have people completing hours and actually helping out than not? Our organizations give us the opportunity to help others in a way that may not have been possible without some help from our brothers and sisters. We are taught values and morals and the importance of helping others, and we are given the opportunity to practice what we have learned, together. Being in Greek life has given me so many opportunities to help others, and I know that there will be even more in the future, whether I'm required to go or not.
