Parker University celebrates 2nd annual Parker Serves

October 6, 2014 — In celebration of Parker Serves, the university’s second annual day of service, Parker University participated in a series of volunteer initiatives throughout the North Texas community on Friday, September 19. More than 500 Parker representatives, including students, faculty, and staff, served at nearly 20 nonprofit organizations in North Texas.

North Texas nonprofits that hosted Parker Serves representatives include Goodwill Industries, North Texas Food Bank, Promise House, and the Resource Center in Dallas; Educational First Steps in Lancaster; Operation Kindness in Carrollton; Mission Arlington in Arlington, the Boys & Girls Club in Grand Prairie; the Community Enrichment Center in North Richland Hills; the Tarrant Area Food Bank in Fort Worth; and Dallas-based Parker LIFE, where interns from the Parker University Chiropractic Wellness Clinics provided chiropractic adjustments to homeless men and women in the community.

“I want to thank you so much for including Educational First Steps in Parker University’s day of service,” said Melissa Anderson-Barreto, donor relations manager of Educational First Steps. “We had a fantastic group that was so willing to help in every way. It was quite a hot morning and we had a pretty labor intensive project, but that didn’t slow the group at all. So much was accomplished at the preschool and the directors, teachers, and children were so happy.”

Since Parker University’s inception in 1982, service for others has been at the foundation of the university’s ongoing mission. Parker University’s President, Dr. Brian McAulay, established Parker Serves in an effort to inspire thousands of volunteer projects across the world.  The institution encouraged alumni, friends, and colleagues to establish volunteer initiatives in their own communities, creating a culture of loving service worldwide.

“We’re proud of closing down campus for the second consecutive year to serve our community on such a massive scale,” said Dr. Brian McAulay, president of Parker University. “Loving service is our first technique at Parker, and we’re thrilled to share that technique with our community.”

The third annual Parker Serves event takes place next September and will once again serve North Texas nonprofits. For more information on Parker Serves, visit www.parker.edu/parkerserves/.

Source: Parker University