Student named honorary chair for Hands on Atlanta

Tech's motto says "progress and service." Consequently, Tech students constantly try to find ways to give back to their community. For example, last spring, many student organizations traveled to the corners of the world to make a difference in developing countries.

Also, each week, students participate in volunteering services such as Hands on Atlanta, tutoring and other community service events across Atlanta.

Recently, Lauren Miller, a fourth-year Management major, was selected as the Honorary Chair of Hands on Atlanta.

Hands on Atlanta (HOA) is one of the largest community service initiatives in the country.

Founded in 1989, HOA now offers more than 1,000 service opportunities to volunteers each month.

Some of the ongoing service projects include AIDS Support Services, Animal Support, Family and Women's Services and Homelessness and Meal Service.

While countless students at Tech have volunteered with one program or another, not many share Miller's continuous desire to give back to the community through volunteering.

"I have always believed that volunteering is a responsibility that each of us has to our community. We all have been blessed beyond what we deserve, and it's important to share some of those blessings with others," Miller said.

Miller says she has been a volunteer all her life. From mentoring children, building houses to cleaning parks, she has done it all.

"When I was younger, my family would volunteer with various shelters, so I guess that's where my volunteering began," Miller said.

With this passion, Miller, like many Tech faculty and students, makes time in her busy schedule to volunteer with HOA as often as possible.

"I enjoy volunteering because I have fun doing the service activities that I participate in. I walk away with a sense that I have fulfilled a need, and I get an opportunity to step away from my daily activities, making me appreciate them more when I return to my routine," Miller said.

However, to Miller, volunteering becomes difficult when she comes face to face with the sadness of the projects.

"It's one thing to see or experience something that bothers you and be driven to action by it, but it is difficult when the sadness of a situation affects your peace," Miller said.

However, the rewards of volunteering overcomes the difficulties when Miller finds herself side by side with other volunteers, making a difference in people's lives.

"I've been an avid volunteer with HOA for more years than I can count, and I truly believe that service is an obligation we all have. Seeing hundreds of people volunteering on a Saturday morning and all working for one cause-to better Atlanta in whatever way they can-is one of the most rewarding experiences [I have had with HOA]."

Billiee Pendleton-Parker, the associate director of Tech's President's Scholarship Program as well as the Chair of HOA's Volunteer Leadership Council, who has served with HOA for many years, feels the same way.

"Some of my most rewarding experiences have ranged from serving for years as a project coordinator for an ongoing project with rousing games of bingo at a senior facility, to coordinating the videotaping by GT students of folks who knew/worked with Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King as a Martin Luther King Summit Day service project, to learning to clean hard-drives and install software," Pendleton-Parker said.

According to Pendleton-Parker, there is something at HOA for everyone.

"The folks at HOA like for all their volunteers to attend a one-hour orientation, which can be provided on campus, if that better suits the needs of students. You can serve as volunteers and/or as project coordinators for many events, including National Youth Service Day in the spring, which is the planet's largest day of service," Pendleton-Parker said.

Moreover, there is even a Technology Service Day in the spring for the typical technological students. One of the most exciting upcoming events is the Hands on Atlanta Day, which is on Oct. 6. Over 17,000 volunteers will be engaged in service projects throughout the metro-Atlanta area.

"There are countless volunteer opportunities in Atlanta...the beauty of HOA is that they serve as a clearing house for non-profit agencies. There is literally something for everyone. I've been an avid volunteer with HOA for more years than I can count, so I truly believe that service is an obligation we all have," said Pendleton-Parker.

This year, HOA day is having a Collegiate Competition to see which college or university in the Atlanta area will have the most students participate in service events.

"So many GT students, faculty and staff are already involved in service, so there is no reason for Georgia Tech not to win this competition. As an honorary chair who is a proud Yellow Jacket, I would be especially excited if we had the largest turnout on Oct. 6th," Miller said.

"HOA has had an almost incalculable impact on the greater Atlanta community. They have community service projects every single day of the year," said Pendleton-Parker.

For more information on Hands on Atlanta, check out the HOA website at www.handsonatlanta.org or e-mail Billiee Pendleton-Parker at billiee.pendletonparker@psp.gatech.edu.