University Times

There’s still time for staff, faculty and student volunteers to sign up for Pitt’s Sept. 10 Day of Caring.

At the 13th annual event more than 400 Pitt volunteers, including family members and friends, are expected to work in surrounding neighborhoods and at local and regional agencies as part of the broader Pitt-United Way campaign.

According to Day of Caring coordinator Steve Zupcic, most of the community projects are booked solid. “But we still need volunteers for our two biggest projects, ‘Keep it clean, Oakland,’ and ‘Construction at Breachmenders,’” Zupcic said. “This year, as we partner with OPDC (Oakland Planning and Development Corporation) for the most massive one-day clean-up project ever in Oakland, we will also be interfacing with the Oakland Business Improvement District. About a dozen OBID personnel will be supervising the efforts to improve the basic quality of life by cleaning up our surrounding area.”

Zupcic added that the Oakland clean-up project is part of an on-going neighborhood campaign to coordinate beautification efforts co-sponsored by OPDC, the Oakland Community Council, the Department of City Planning and Pitt’s Student Volunteer Outreach program. Volunteers for the Breachmenders construction project will help the community improvement organization do interior and façade restoration on West Oakland homes near the Pitt campus.

At press time, two other projects, “Family House Fix-it Day” and “Community Human Services,” where volunteers will help spruce up two local social service agencies, were still open.

“Volunteers should check the Day of Caring web site for the latest information on available projects,” Zupcic said. “You can register on-line there, too, at www.pitt.edu/~united up until Sept. 8.”

Volunteers also may call Zupcic at 4-7709 or e-mail him at stz@pitt.edu for more information or to register. Pre-registration is required. All projects are set for 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Sept 10.

In addition to work release time (with the approval of their supervisors), Day of Caring volunteers get a T-shirt; lunch supplied; all necessary tools and equipment; transportation, and the opportunity to win prizes during this fall’s Pitt-United Way fund-raising effort, which will be launched in October.

The traditional “thank you party” has been canceled, Zupcic said, to better use funding for supplies and equipment.

—Peter Hart