The possibility of April snow showers did not dampen the spirits of the nearly 70 volunteers gathered Sunday afternoon for the Day of Interfaith Youth Service.
The Day of Interfaith Youth Service (DIYS) is an annual international event started by The Interfaith Youth Core (IFYC), a non-profit organization based in Chicago, and Interfaith Circle, a student organization, brought the event to Miami University's campus for the first time this year.
The co-presidents of Interfaith circle, junior Angie Chan and senior Whittney Barth, along with senior Jenny Jacob of the Association of Jewish Students, organized DIYS.
According to Chan, the sites of service-the Family Resource Center, the Oxford Community Choice Pantry and the Community Counseling and Crisis Center-were chosen purposefully.
"We wanted three places that were religious-neutral," Chan said. "They serve the community regardless of why you need help or who you are."
The tasks varied by site and included mowing, cleaning up the grounds, planting flowers, mulching, raking and even chopping down small trees.
According to Barth, the group wanted the projects to be reflected in what the sites wanted for themselves.
The group was able to give $400-donated by the Miami University Parents Fund, the Oxford Community Foundation and Associated Student Government (ASG)-to each site to buy supplies for the beautification projects.
Jacob said the purpose of the event was to unify students.
"The overall goal of program is to show we can all work together as one even though we have different backgrounds and beliefs," Jacob said.
Chan added that beautifying the sites would help the facilities better serve the Oxford community. However, she said the day was really about facilitating understanding across religious borders.
"But also, we feel there are a lot of misunderstandings on campus on religion," Chan said. "Even though there are all these lines drawn in the community and on the campus between color, religion (and) socio-economic class, good things can happen when you cross those lines (and) when you look beyond those borders at a broader goal."
Barth said the event was open to all interested students, no matter who they were.
"Not everybody that signed up is affiliated with a group," Barth said. "We all have a story to share whether you're in a group or not."
Dinner at lower Alexander dining hall followed the service projects. Small-group discussion at dinner about why one may be compelled to serve offered a safe ground to approach a usually taboo topic, according to Chan.
"Service is something that everyone is called to do," she said. "No one is going to be offended if you say, 'This is why I serve.'"
Interfaith Circle treasurer Aaron Friedberg, who volunteered, saw the value of both events of the day.
"While we were working we weren't talking about faith, it was about the service and the fun of helping others," he said. "But at the dinner we talked about faith and how it related to service. And everyone agreed that service is important so you can be a person you can be satisfied with."
While not all of 110 people who signed up actually showed up, which Chan attributed to the weather and the lengthy gap between sign-ups and the event itself, she was pleased with the turn out.
"Just the fact that people signed up for an interfaith event is amazing," Chan said. "That word-faith-can be a turn-off."
Chan her fellow organizers hope the event will become annual.
By registering the event with IFYC, the group was entered into a drawing for a flip camera, which it won. The video footage shot of the service projects will be sent back to be edited and posted on IFYC's Web site.
The DIYS was the kick-off event for Get Together Week. Tuesday, Interfaith Circle's third annual "Stop the Hate!" rally will march at 6 p.m. from Uptown Park to the Seal to raise awareness about religious intolerance.
