What can be accomplished in 3,133 hours?With 256 of those hours, Eddie Roohan, Spanish and theology double major, used his savings to cofound the Bridge to Life School in Cambodia for 60 students.
Hailey Smith, psychology major, used 819 of those hours to help children with serious illnesses at Ronald McDonald House and Make-A-Wish Foundation, troubled youngsters at Los Angeles County’s Sylmar Juvenile Hall and special needs children. Roohan and Smith were among six Loyola Marymount University graduates honored at this year’s Riordan Community Service Awards for contributing more than 3,100 volunteer-hours to nonprofit organizations through LMU’s Center for Service and Action. “We honor six outstanding students who have dedicated their time and energy to the poor and marginalized” said Pam Rector, director of the Center for Service and Action. “We, their parents, friends, supervisors and members of the university community, come together to thank them for living out one of the traditions of Loyola Marymount University – being ‘persons for and with others.’ ” The honorees received $1,000 from the Riordan Foundation, founded by Richard Riordan, the former Los Angeles mayor, for their outstanding service. The other Riordan Service Award winners were: Liberal studies major, Lara Torii volunteered 960 hours at various organizations including the Good Shepherd Shelter tutoring fourth-, fifth- and sixth-grade students at the shelter’s school), the Marian Service organization and the Learning resource Center. Mercedes Adams, a political science and classical civilizations double major, who volunteered 512 hours, including 120 at the Los Angeles Children’s Law Center, helping children and their families work their way through the court system. Adams will be attending Loyola Law School next fall. Veronica Recinos, a sociology and Spanish double major, volunteered 330 hours at the Impacto after school program run by the Dolores Mission’s Base Community and Underwings program. Matthew Scott, a business management major, created an English language program to help homeless Latino immigrant men overcome the language barrier during the 256 hours he volunteered at the Guadalupe Homeless Project. |