By Michael Foster-Sanders/campus editor

A severe thunderstorm couldn’t deter students from volunteering their time at the annual “Big Day of Service” April 6 on NE Campus.

Students, faculty and staff gave their time to projects on campus and around the TCC community, including outdoor trash cleanup, garden beautification and preparing care packages for the troops. Student activities provided the supplies to those who volunteered.

The event has an effect on people, said Michelle Taylor, NE student development associate.

“You notice the difference from when they walk in, in the morning and then after,” she said. “They’ve built friendships they didn’t have before and have an experience of serving together.”

A lot of first-time participants came to the event, which was the case for NE student Blake Bailey, who said it felt good to do community service.

“I gave back to the community, which is something I didn’t have to do,” he said. “It’s what I chose to do.”

NE student Mandy Sharp, who was also a first-time participant, said she enjoyed herself because she got to meet new people and also participate in helping future events on campus.

“We helped out writing icebreaker questions for big groups and also helped making signs for ‘Spring Fest,’” she said.

Bookmarks were also made for people in the library who needed them, she said.

“We put encouraging sayings and positive quotes on the bookmarks and made them look pretty,” she said.

NE Infinity Math Club member Brittany White celebrated her second time to participate by helping her club build a rock garden so they could leave something lasting and contribute to the aesthetics of the campus.

“Half of our officers are transferring and graduating, so we chose something that we can leave behind, which is a rock garden outside of NTAB,” White said. “I wanted to leave my mark on TCC because TCC has left its mark on me.”