First-year students in Kansas City University’s (KCU) College of Osteopathic Medicine, College of Dental Medicine and College of Biosciences traded the classroom for volunteerism when they joined faculty and staff in the University’s time-honored tradition of We Care Day. The annual event—a day dedicated to community service—has taken place for more than two decades and personifies KCU’s mission of improving the well-being of the communities we serve by allowing students to address critical needs while partnering with local organizations.
This year, students chose from more than 45 service projects across Kansas City and Joplin, including assisting with planting at Pendleton Heights Community Orchard; landscaping at the Joplin Police Department; cleaning up brush at Wildcat Glades Audubon Center; sorting and re-packaging food donations at Harvesters; assembling hygiene kits for Heart to Heart International and assisting with Grace United Community Ministries' summer carnival. For students, We Care Day holds significant meaning and leaves a lasting impact that shapes not only their time at KCU, but also their future careers as physicians, psychologists, dentists, researchers and ethicists.
“I love giving back to the community and getting involved. I just moved here from Topeka, Kansas, and it’s nice to see the city that I am going to be in for the next four years,” said dental student Colton Broxterman.
Medical student Ellie Mitchell agrees.
“It’s important to be involved in the community we are now a part of. As medical students, we are learning how to serve people,” she added. “I think We Care Day really helps us bridge that connection of why we are here.”
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