A Day of Service
On Saturday, October 15, 2022, members of the Phi Kappa Phi national office joined Baton Rouge non-profit Clean Pelican for a “Clean Community Event”. Participants included Phi Kappa Phi members from Louisiana State University and Nicholls State University, employees of Iron Tribe Fitness and Trader Joe’s, and several other adults and children from the Baton Rouge community.
Johanna Landreneau, interim executive director of Clean Pelican, had these remarks to begin the day, "Clean Pelican was organized to fight litter in Baton Rouge. Community litter pickups are a way to raise awareness about the negative impacts of litter on the environment and economy as well as make our community cleaner and more beautiful. Clean Pelican is thankful to The Honor Society of Phi Kappa Phi for giving their time and talent to participate in the service day litter pickup! It's groups such as Phi Kappa Phi that make our city a wonderful place to live, work and play."
The goal of the event was to pick up litter within a half-mile radius of the shopping center. Clean Pelican provided all the necessary clean-up equipment such as trash bags, litter pick-up tools, buckets and gloves, and Trader Joe’s donated snacks and water. Clean Pelican also provided information on how litter is not just unsightly but that the accumulation of it creates flooding issues in Baton Rouge.
Phi Kappa Phi encourages all its chapters to get involved in a community service project during the Fall. The Phi Kappa Phi Council of Students, a national leadership group, initiated the Fall Service Project in 2019 to fulfill part of the Society’s mission statement, “a community of scholars in service to others.”
Theodore Alivio, chapter president at Nicholls State University and assistant professor of chemistry, drove from Thibodaux, Louisiana to join the event. “I had a wonderful time giving back to the community as a member of Phi Kappa Phi. I am thankful to Clean Pelican for the experience. Outreach activities such as this serve as great avenues to further our love of learning," said Alivio. "In these small but meaningful gestures, we learn how we can make our local, national, and global communities a better place."
For any questions on Fall Service Projects or Phi Kappa Phi community service initiatives, please contact Edward White, assistant director of chapter services at ewhite@phikappaphi.org.
