Covid pandemic changes Day of Service

Like so many other activities and events over the past 10 months, the covid pandemic has impacted volunteer opportunities Monday on the National Day of Service, which is Martin Luther King Jr. Day.

Colleges and universities in the region that might have volunteer opportunities for students and staff on National Day of Service are not in session. Universities starting online this month or resuming classes in February are holding their volunteer initiatives next month.

At Seton Hill University, the start of the spring semester has been pushed back until Feb. 2. The university typically delays its National Day of Service because of its semester schedule, said Jennifer Reeger, Seton Hill spokeswoman.

The university will hold on-campus events in late February, in which students will have a variety of opportunities to volunteer their services, Reeger said.

With the start of Saint Vincent College’s second semester pushed back to Feb. 8, the college will not be sponsoring any student service activities Monday. But, Saint Vincent will commemorate Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.’s life with campus events during the Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, from Feb. 8 to 13, said Jim Berger, college spokesman.

The University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg will not have any student activities Monday because students have been asked to remain at home for the beginning of classes, said Susan Isola, UPG spokeswoman.

At Penn State New Kensington, events will be made available to the campus community and the public in virtual settings, said Corinne Coulson, strategic communications manager at the New Kensington campus. An online forum will be held Monday and feature Sybrina Fulton, mother of Trayvon Martin, speaking about social justice activism.

The Community Day School in Pittsburgh’s Squirrel Hill neighborhood is seeking facilitators for its Martin Luther King Read for Peace Day. Volunteers will be reading books about the civil rights movement and leading reflections on how people can create a more equitable and just world.

There will be volunteer opportunities Monday to assist two food banks in the region — the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank in Duquesne and the Westmoreland County Food Bank in Delmont — as well as a Greensburg family shelter.

The Democratic Women of Westmoreland County on Monday will collect nonperishable food for the Westmoreland County Food Bank and cleaning supplies for the Welcome Home emergency family shelter in Greensburg as part of the National Day of Service.

“We chose these two (organizations) because we felt they have been the most impacted by the pandemic,” said Carol Mintus, vice president of the Democratic Women’s club, which has about 80 members.

The county food bank continues to see food insecurity after the holidays but the preholiday drives for the food bank are over, said Jennifer Miller, chief executive of county food bank.

The food bank saw a steep drop last year in the number of food drives that support the food bank because people were not gathering because of covid-related restrictions, Miller said.

At the Greater Pittsburgh Community Food Bank, volunteers are needed Monday to help pack boxes at its warehouse in Duquesne for distribution to needy families to get the boxes at drive-up distributions in the region, said Lisa Scales, chief executive officer of the food bank.

The YWCA of Greater Pittsburgh and the Aaron Donald 99 Foundation are assisting to recruit volunteers for the work on Monday, Scales said.

Because of the pandemic, the volunteer opportunities were eliminated in March and the food bank had to rely on the Pennsylvania National Guard to help in the distribution. They reopened for volunteers in June, “but we still need volunteers,” Scales said.

Some of those volunteers are needed on a third food-box packing line that operates from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. at its warehouse, Scales said. Volunteers also are needed to assist at the drive-by food distributions, she noted.

Those interested in volunteering can contact the food bank through its website. at https://www.pittsburghfoodbank.org/get-involved/volunteer/.

Westmoreland food drive

Donations can be dropped off at at the Westmoreland County Democratic Committee office from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday at 903 E. Pittsburgh St., Greensburg. Volunteers will collect donations of items and money at tables outside the building, to allow for social distancing.

The Democratic Women’s group normally does some sort of drive each year, said Mintus, who is vice president of the organization. In previous years, they have adopted an active-­duty soldier and collected items to send to that person and have collected for the homeless shelter, Mintus said.

Those who want to make a monetary donation can write a check to the organization they want to support — the Westmoreland County Food Bank or to Connect Inc., operator of the shelter — and take them to the Democratic Committee’s Greensburg office.