Students can get a free bracelet just by doing something nice. This is one of the perks of Pay It Forward Week.
The idea for the week of community service and engagement, put on by Ohio Union’s ServeCorps, was that of Joe Flarida, a third-year in political science and public affairs and a ServeCorps director.
Yasmin Ghassab, a third-year in economics and ServeCorps’ head of marketing, said the vision for the week is for the campus community to come together to “pay it forward.”
“(Pay It Forward Week) was a way to connect the idea, the act, the movie, that whole concept that Woody Hayes spoke about. It started with the bracelet project, and that’s where it kinda all took off from,” Flarida said.
The week kicked off Monday at 8 a.m. with the Ohio State swim team’s “Water to Water: 12-hour Swim for Pure Water.” Men’s and women’s swim team members participated in a 12-hours swim-a-thon and all proceeds benefitted Thirst Relief International, a non-profit organization that campaigns for clean drinking water.
A service fair is scheduled for Tuesday at the Ohio Union West Plaza from 2-6 p.m. Attendees will be able to find out about service opportunities in the community and get free Coke products, music and tickets for the 8th Floor Improv show.
Also on Tuesday, OUAB will present “Pay It Forward with The Buried Life,” from 7-9 p.m. with doors opening at 6 p.m. “The Buried Life” is an MTV show featuring four friends completing a list of 100 things to do before you die.
As with other events throughout the week, ServeCorps partnered with Undergraduate Student Government to end the week with “Rock the Block: Day of Service,” which is aligned with OSU’s May Week and Greek Week.
Lexie Vigil, a first-year in nursing, said she plans to attend Rock the Block with her sorority sisters on Saturday. Rock the Block is an annual campus-wide day of community service where students go into the University District and the greater Columbus community to volunteer.
Registration begins Saturday at 8 a.m., at the Ohio Union Great Hall Meeting Rooms.
On Monday, ServeCorps members were at William Oxley Thompson Library throughout the day handing out Coke products and free “Pay It Forward” bracelets. Ghassab said the group ordered about 7,000 bracelets.
“Anyone on campus can get one by doing something nice,” she said.
If a student is wearing a green “Pay It Forward” bracelet between April 24 and April 30, a portion of their bill at Gooeyz, Pizza Rustica and J. Gumbos will benefit Nationwide Children’s Hospital, and at Buffalo Wild Wings on April 29.
“When people hear ‘pay it forward,’ people tend to think they have to take a lot of time out of their day or use money,” Ghassab said. “It’s actually really easy … like zipping up a book bag.”
For a more complete list of the week’s events visit www.payitforward.osu.edu/pifweek.
