Q & A: UWF Alternative Spring Break President, Jody Winters

Jody Winters is a senior majoring in Pre Med/Biology from Woodville, TX. Jody is currently the President of the Alternative Spring Break club at UWF.

What is the Alternative Spring Break (ASB) program?
ASB is the volunteering club on campus. We provide members, as well as help other clubs, volunteering opportunities in the community and on campus. However, one of our best draws are the volunteer trips we take during fall and spring breaks. We try to go somewhere outside of UWF and encourage students to follow our motto: SERVE, TRAVEL, and LEARN. These trips give students the opportunity to spend their free time helping others.

How do students get involved in ASB?
Students usually find us from our flyers posted on campus, through past members or from VolunteerUWF! To get involved with ASB activities you can contact our advisor Tiffany Jurey at tiffanyjurey@uwf.edu or myself, the current ASB President, at jlw61@students.uwf.edu. We will send you an email with more information on how to volunteer and our volunteering schedule and students just have to email us back that they would like to help.

Where have past ASB trips taken place?
In 2009 we went to East Saint Louis, Missouri, a rural town with a lot of homeless and unemployed. While we were there we paired with another local organization and helped tutor elementary kids, provided afterschool care, and worked with many homeless food banks and thrift stores.
In 2010 we went to Claytor Lake State Park in Dublin, Virginia. Here we worked alongside the park rangers to thin out harmful invading trees, make park benches, dig drainage ditches and restore gravel roads. We appeared on TV during our trip, which was neat. Here is the link to our clip.

This year we went to Orlando, FL to help with many different organizations. We worked with Mustard Seed where we sorted food and supplies for disaster relief, the Museum of Art where we helped with restorations and cleaning, Hands on Orlando where we sorted donations for the homeless and played games with the people at a battered women and children's center. We also helped make gardens and rake leaves at a local hospital.

Do ASB students participate in other service opportunities throughout the year?
Yes, we volunteer all year round with local agencies and with other UWF clubs at events. Some of the things we do include, but are limited to, hospice garden remodeling, walking/playing with humane society animals, visits to the Currie House homeless shelter, Habitat for Humanity builds, and many more opportunities are available through organizations on campus and within the community.

What have you learned from your experiences participating in the ASB program?
Something new I've learned through ASB is about volunteerism in other countries. We usually have a lot of foreign exchange students go on our ASB trips because they don't go home over breaks. One of the things I've learned is that volunteerism in other countries is almost non-existent. When the students go to volunteer for their first time they are blow away from the impact of serving others.

What is one thing you wish all UWF students knew about ASB?
I wish everyone knew that they have the potential to be the one to "make the difference" and should follow that instinct to lend a helping hand. It is a wonderful and humbling experience.

Is there anything else you feel families should know about the ASB program?
Participating in ASB's programs are a great way to get involved and help others. If your student is looking for their niche somewhere we'd love to have them join us. Also, if your student has a volunteering idea we are more than willing to help them get started or add it as a volunteering opportunity on ASB's own calendar.