Although no messages were likely to come in, for any who might have needed them, they waited.
The MSU Safe Night Club, founded last November, is the collective effort of four students to fill a perceived need in the community: a service to walk students home on the weekends, wherever on campus they are, should they feel unsafe at night. Safe Night Club operates from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. every Friday and Saturday. So far, Safe Night Club has only had one person use their service, but the club is making efforts to make their name known.
Club president Evan Common said the idea for the club emerged while discussing Statewalk, a free service offered by the Alpha Phi Omega, coed service fraternity, with a friend. Statewalk offers to walk students home from the Main Library from 9 p.m. to 1 a.m. every week, Sunday through Thursday.
“She (the friend) didn’t have anyone to walk home with one day, she was telling me how scared she was to walk around at night alone,” Common said. “And I said, ‘OK, well why didn’t you just ask Statewalk?’ and she (told me), ‘well, they don’t really operate on the weekends.’ ... I decided, well, I guess I could do something about it.”
Safe Night Club provides a similar service, but at a different time and scale.
While Statewalk will accompany students home from the library on weekdays, Safe Night Club will come to students anywhere up to a short distance outside of campus and walk them back home.
“Obviously, we’re not going to walk seven miles, but if you live anywhere past Hagadorn (Road) or any of the surrounding areas we will walk you back all the way if that’s what they ask for,” Safe Night recruiter Logan Brissette said.
Common said he hopes with increased awareness more people will know about Safe Night Club and be willing to ask for the club's help.
In addition to expanding the club's website, Safe Night web developer Yash Patel said he is developing an app for the group that will function similarly to Uber, allowing users to request Safe Night members to come to their location to walk them home.
Patel said he hopes to complete the app by the end of the month and upload it to the various app markets as soon as possible.
Advertiser Marianne Nezich said the group is working on getting a poster hung in the Union, where they now meet in the main lobby during their operating hours.
“We’re hoping this year, with having gone to Sparticipation, getting our name out there … especially with a bunch of the rape cases that came out last year … to have a group that is potentially out there to help you get from one place to another.” Brissette said.
Alpha Phi Omegan public relations director and economics sophomore Parker LaVanway said StateWalk is not working with Safe Night Club yet in an official capacity, but would is open to collaborating with the club.
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