Suffolk Reporter

April marks National Volunteer Month, and Stony Brook students are dedicating their time and skills to causes important to their communities. Their efforts aim to provide hands-on experiences while uplifting and giving back to the community.

The Center for Service Learning and Community Service has launched a series of stories to highlight the contributions of student volunteers, showcasing their efforts to foster meaningful change both within and beyond the Stony Brook community.

The Hidden Treasures club, one such initiative, is merging sustainability with fashion. This Stony Brook University club raises environmental awareness by promoting thrift shopping through their campus thrift store. Club Secretary Viyang Hao explained that, "Many students feel bad about constantly ordering online because they don’t know of alternatives. Until they discover thrifting, some students don’t even know it’s an option. It’s so rewarding to show them that thrifting is a cool, affordable way to shop sustainably."

Hao highlighted how club members also develop skills like leadership and public speaking through monthly newsletters on sustainability issues. “We have a monthly newsletter, the Sustainability Newsletter, where our outreach team shares snippets about sustainability issues from around the world—both positive and negative,” she stated, emphasizing the professional growth these activities foster.

Viyang Hao, who aspires to pursue a career in law, noted, “I also learn a lot about marketing and other areas that will be helpful in the future.” Hidden Treasures aims to encourage students to be stylish, yet environmentally conscious.

Senior biology major Andrew Fu co-founded the Community Garden, a group focused on sustainable food systems and community engagement. Inspired by his experience at GrowNYC, Fu stated, “I used to work at farmers markets in New York City. And so that really inspired me in terms of having local food systems, having sustainable food systems, having access to nutritious food.” Fu hopes to expand their efforts to more gardens across the campus.

Fu emphasized the importance of building a community, “I also wanted to build community and have people come outdoors and have more physical spaces for people to interact with each other, and at the same time do something positive for themselves and for the community,” he said. Future plans for expansion include the development of an app to organize these initiatives more effectively.

Elsewhere on campus, the SBU Cat Network, supported by junior Daniel Gitter and sophomore Aiden Cage, focuses on the care of community cats. The group’s activities include feeding and providing shelter for cats, with members finding fulfillment in socializing formerly feral cats. Gitter remarked, “It was really rewarding to see that, while it’s this cat that was just super scared a couple days ago, is just a sweetheart now.” Cage echoed this sentiment, recalling a four-month-old feral cat, "Socializing is probably the most rewarding thing, because you can see that happen."

Those interested in community service can visit the Center for Service Learning and Community Service, email at CommunityService@stonybrook.edu, or schedule an appointment on Handshake under “Volunteer Positions and Service Projects.”

Contributors include Aima Chaudhry, Merica Griffin, Lily Kis-Horvath, and Angelica Zeideia.