Serve Beyond Cincinnati broadens the definition of Spring Break “fun” for University of Cincinnati students who commit to one of their spring adventures.
Serve Beyond Cincinnati (SBC) is an entirely student-organized and operated group. Known for its “alternative spring break” trips, SBC works with organizations like Homes from the Heart and the Fuller Center for Housing to send UC students to project sites around the world. During Spring Break, for example, young people construct homes and schools, develop better sanitation systems, and introduce useful technology in locations including Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Peru, and Cameroon.
SBC also supports local projects with student volunteers. Trips to Louisville are offered on weekends, where SBC partners with the Fuller Center for Housing to renovate local homes. SBC works with partners like the Fuller Center for Housing and Homes from the Heart, both organizations with long-standing ties to the communities they serve, to provide the in-country logistics needed to feed, shelter and transport student participants safely in whatever country or area they are working.
Since other groups have focused on local work, SBC is now gearing up for larger projects and the fund-raising that makes them possible. Each trip costs a student about $1,500, usually half of that is airfare. SBC co-president Lane Hart says SBC wants to focus on making these larger trips happen for students.
“Students do their own fundraising, and we plan to provide even more support [for that] than we have in the past,” he says.
Do Good:
Find out: What SBC projects are being planned or are currently underway by joining the listserv.
Get involved: by signing up for a service trip or SBC project.
By Becky Johnson
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