Volunteers at the Listening Ear Crisis Intervention Center will be able to enjoy their new location visually while listening and helping their callers.
The Listening Ear, 1017 E. Grand River Ave., has six volunteers from the Community Service Network to thank for their freshly painted white walls.
“Community Service Network is through the James Madison College,” said Jason Sroufe, a social relations junior. “(The goal) is to get in touch with different organizations and link them with student volunteers.”
Sroufe, co-coordinator of the program, said its involvement with the Listening Ear was important for two reasons.
“One reason we took this project on is because of what the Listening Ear does,” he said.
The Listening Ear is a volunteer-run center offering a free crisis hotline for people in the community who need someone to talk to.
Sroufe also acknowledges the importance of doing anything to better the environment.
“We realize it’s not only important to study but also be a pro-active part of the community - especially East Lansing,” he said.
“We get about 10,000 calls a year here,” said Amy Cairns, office manager of the Listening Ear. “Working here you feel better about yourself because you are helping people and helping the community.”
The crisis center, which recently moved from its former location at 423 Albert Ave., needed paint on the walls of the renovated building it now occupies.
“We’ve got a huge volunteer pool, and they always give about four hours (of volunteer time) a week,” Cairns said. “We didn’t want to overexhaust the volunteers here for this purpose, so I called MSU for help.”
Journalism sophomore Justin Godley was one student who volunteered.
“I wanted to help out and show support for the Community Service Network,” he said. “It also makes me feel good about myself to know that I am helping make a difference.”
One student in James Madison College said her volunteer experience helped make what she was learning in her classes more useful in life.
“In James Madison we read about policy,” said Tanya Palit, an international relations sophomore. “It’s interesting to know you made a difference by doing something.”
Sroufe said the Community Service Network has other projects it is working on.
“We help out the MSU food bank, the AIDS walk, and soon we will help put together a Special Olympics,” he said.
Although at times it is difficult for Sroufe to find students willing to volunteer, he said he gets the most feedback from students who want to work with children.
“(The volunteers) give a boost in morale knowing other people care and want to support and help out,” Cairns said. “We don’t know what we would do without them.”
