Serve Day: A Tale of Performance and Miscommunication

Reported By: Benny Schorie

Illustrated By: Addie Patterson

Every fall semester, George Fox University (GFU) hosts Serve Day. According to GFU’s website, students, faculty, staff, and alumni go across the community to support local organizations on this day dedicated to service which aims “to utilize serving as a means of greater proximity, deeper learning, and mutual empowerment with our neighbors.” The goal of this event is to inspire students to volunteer year-round and, through this, deepen their relationship with Christ.

This year’s Serve Day had over 2,000 students at different sites across the Portland Metro Area. These sites included churches, public works facilities, non-profit organizations and local businesses. The notion of Serve Day is quite compelling, but good intentions don’t guarantee positive outcomes. 

Anyone who follows GFU’s Instagram page was bombarded with dozens of stories and posts depicting students hanging out at a fire station and washing the trucks, brushing horses at an equestrian center, and helping local Friendsview residents plant a garden on this year’s Serve Day. Afterward, students had a party on the Quad with a slip-n-slide and shaved ice. The posts made it look absolutely idyllic. 

What they miss, however, is students doing intensive manual labor like yard work and small construction projects. In a survey conducted by The Crescent, one student noted their assignment was enjoyable but very tiring; this alongside “the mandatory nature of it and the fact that we weren’t able to choose where to go made it less pleasant,” the student said. Another student opted out of participating when seeing their assignment was to clean Hadlock Center. “If it was an opportunity to serve the Newberg community in some capacity, I would've absolutely participated. Hadlock just didn't feel like a way to make an impact,” said this student.

Also, the communication about Serve Day is notoriously a disaster. Students report struggling to receive their assignments, not receiving them at all, or getting them switched at the last minute. Oftentimes, students are unprepared for the intensity of their designated jobs; this can be an unwelcome surprise and potentially hazardous for people with disabilities. This lack of information leaves students in the dark and removes a layer of consent as they might feel compelled to perform their tasks because of pressure from the GFU community. 

The contrast of Serve Day’s digital portrayal versus its reality breaks down the event’s pure intentions. In all its decisions, GFU has to strike a balance between being an educational Christian institution and a business that needs to make money. The representation of Serve Day is a marketing tactic used to encourage new students and maintain a particular image. As students are a crucial part of this, showing their hearts for service and the joy of Serve Day while hiding the hardship maintains the purpose and essence of GFU’s image.

Beyond the performative aspects of the event, Serve Day is simply one day. It is difficult for one day of work to provide for the needs of organizations with constant volunteer and resource shortages; what these organizations want is consistent help. 

Students also need consistency in making service a habit in their lives. More extensive volunteer programs at GFU would create a culture of service instead of assuming that “students will be inspired to volunteer to help meet the needs [that local organizations] are addressing year-round,” as the GFU website states. While Serve Day is beautiful, it also contradicts itself and threatens its own purpose.