It is easy to think that the devastation in Haiti has no relevance to Millersville students. However, part of being human being, is having compassion and taking action. Now, more then ever.

Students at Millersville have stopped talking and have started doing. Hearts for Haiti is a program put together by the students in Hobbs Hall. They will be making chocolate candy to be sold before Valentine’s Day. All money raised will go to help Salem Pentecostal Haitian Church in New Holland, Pennsylvania.

Matthew Besson is a Millersville student and his parents lead the Haitian church in New Holland. His church plans to collect food donations mostly water, rice, and beans. They also are accepting monetary donations in order to send a trailer full of supplies to the people of Haiti. Most of the aid in Haiti is going to the capital, Port-au-Prince. Salem Pentecostal Haitian Church hopes to reach those on the outskirts, who have not yet received aid.

The church’s congregation has approximately 200 members with one common goal: To see their homeland get back on their feet and remain standing. It is hard to understand the magnitude of the current state of Haiti. The media, even with their pictures of countless death and endless rubble, cannot wrap their heads around Haiti.

The Salem Pentecostal Haitian Church is also teaming with other churches in New Holland to put on a concert to help aid Haiti. The concert will be held February 20, at the New Holland Recreation Center. It will start at 6:30 p.m. with food drop-off boxes and tables to accept donations. All the money raised will be donated to Haiti.

Should it be this easy to get caught up in college activities while families are being torn apart and death is occurring every day on a large scale? “We may feel broke, but we have so much more then they will ever have. Can we sit by and watch them suffer,” Besson than said.

So how can students help? Look around campus for drop off boxes within the dorms to help aid Haiti. For someone’s birthday, make a donation to help Haiti in their name. Purchase candy from Hearts for Haiti (at the table or on sale in the office at Hobbs Hall) or make a donation. Make food donations or monetary donations to the Salem Pentecostal Haitian Church. Help bring hope to Haiti.

Donations to the church can be stored in the Rec Room at Hobbs Hall. Donations in the form of personal checks should be made payable to the Salem Pentecostal Haitian Church (the church can also be contacted at 717-351-0367 or can be visited at 153 Tabor Road New Holland PA, 17557). For more information on the event, the New Holland Recreation Center can be contacted at 717-354-4747)

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At Millersville University, Wrobel has served as a member of the Dining Committee, Pride, and the Student Concerns and Allocations committee. Also, Wrobel has shined as a member and president overseeing the MU Student Senate. Wrobel has acted as president since spring and was nominated to the Board of Governors for the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education (PASSHE).

Wrobel is one of the three Student Government Presidents on the Board of Governors for the PASSHE. Only three students are selected from the fourteen PASSHE school organizations. Wrobel’s task is to provide student views to the board.

Wrobel also works on the Board of Student Government Presidents with the other 14 members. It is within this board that Wrobel and others conduct face-to-face meetings and conference over the phone to accomplish PASSHE initiatives and to solve student-related issues.

During these meetings, Wrobel works with the PASSHE organization as a team. One member of the board, Kenneth M. Jarin stated, “Our student members bring an important perspective to the Board.”

Wrobel and the Student Governors for PASSHE from Edinboro and Slippery Rock, hold the same voting rights as all other members of the board. Every day, new topics are discussed, which leads to new and challenging issues. “Each day, each meeting, is a new learning experience,” she said.

These experiences have made Wrobel’s experience as a student of MU well worth it.
Wrobel has also won the PRIDE award. The PRIDE award offers Millersville students with the chance to nominate fellow classmates on their different accomplishments. This award proved to be “particularly special” because it was voted on by Wrobel’s peers.

Accomplishing in the many ways Wrobel has, she openly gives thanks to professors, senators, and advisors who have lead her along the way. Also, she is thankful for the opportunity to serve as an orientation leader where she says, “Not only did I learn to grow as a person, I learned to grow as a friend, a mentor, and a leader.” This opportunity acquired through MU sparked the later involvement she would have in the university.

Being a senior, Mackenzie Wrobel urges us to take the step out of our comfort zone even if it means taking the path less traveled because the rewards will be well worth it.

Another thought of Wrobel was, “People help people.”

This statement is fundamentally the role she has had in PASSHE Board of Governors and all other committees she has served on. Always focused on the common, Wrobel and the Board of Governors work internally in order for members of the PASSHE to perform better externally. Wrobel said, “In the end, the lessons and experiences are beyond worth it. It is an accomplishment I will always treasure.”

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That person is Shannon Custer. Custer was the first student at Millersville University to be awarded the Peter Buchanan Scholarship. Custer was one of four who were chosen to win the award.

Every year, the Peter Buchanan Scholarship Program in conjunction with the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education and Affiliated Student Achievement Program (CASE ASAP) receives scholarship nominees from more than 300 campuses in America. This scholarship is awarded to students based on their involvement in an organization and how they emerge as a leader.

If selected as a winner, recipients receive money toward the cost of attending a national leadership convention. In 2009, the Student Ambassadors National Convention was held in Inner Harbor Baltimore, Md. It was here that students from more than 100 schools came together to participate in a leadership convention.

Custer, along with her co-president, performed a presentation for recruitment into Millersville University Student Ambassadors (MUSA). Ice-breaker games were played to learn more about the people attending the convention.

Among the many accomplishments gained by attending the convention, Custer and the MUSA placed in the top four for the spirit award and performed a show spreading their MU pride. She received a special opportunity to speak to the president of CASE ASAP one-on-one.

Custer said, “I walked away feeling proud that all my hard work paid off.” She was also thankful for the opportunity she had to learn more about her peers in MUSA and for her new found confidence. This confidence will become essential as she oversees the Student Ambassadors as president this year.

Custer is a woman of leadership. Attending Arch Bishop Ryan Catholic High School started her off in the right direction. She was president of the Sign Language Club, a track athlete, a member of the National Honor Society, a member of the year book staff, and secretary for an organization called Ryan for Life. Her leadership skills started at a young age and continue to blossom in her college career.

As the new students of Millersville University try to get acquainted with the campus, and returning students get back into the swing of things, it may seem hard to break away from college chaos. However, it is essential not only for the growth of Millersville as a campus but for individual growth that students become part of something bigger than themselves. Defying a hearing impairment, Custer answers the phone in the alumni office. Busy, but still finding time, she organizes paperwork for the alumni association and plans homecoming events. As a student, she meets every deadline while still finding time to preside over an organization.

“I just wanted to say that MUSA is a prestigious organization, which connects students with alumni. I wouldn’t have gotten through college without the people of this group. They are my support, and some of my best friends. In the end, going to this convention just brings us closer and we learn things about each other we would not on campus,” Custer said.

Instead of shirking away from leadership roles students could have on campus, they could learn from Custer. Joining an organization is beneficial. Students can gain a new support system away from home, members can become best friends, and they can learn to grow as a community as they learn more about each other. Students should follow in her footsteps and leave an imprint of their own.

New applications for the Peter Buchanan Scholarship are due by April 9, 2010 and will later be made available by accessing http://www.case.org.

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