On September 6, the Seton Hill University community participated in its annual Labor of Love event. For the 31st year, students, faculty and staff took part in a day of volunteering and community service. More than 300 students volunteered their time to the community at over 30 organizations and project sites.

“Labor of Love follows in the footsteps of our founding religious order, the Sisters of Charity of Seton Hill, whose charism is to serve the most vulnerable and respond to the greatest community needs,” says Amanda Dewitt, director of service experience at Seton Hill. “The Sisters of Charity motto, ‘Caritas Christi urget nos’ (the love of Christ urges us), continues to inspire the community work that we do here at Seton Hill University.”

“The Sisters of Charity motto, ‘Caritas Christi urget nos’ (the love of Christ urges us), continues to inspire the community work that we do here at Seton Hill University.”

The Setonians lent a helping hand to organizations of every kind. Participants were able to choose where they wanted to volunteer for the day. Many student organizations and athletic teams chose to volunteer together.

The men’s lacrosse team volunteered at Stoneybrook Therapeutic Riding Center. There they helped maintain the facilities and tend to the horses. The tennis team prepared fundraising materials and spent quality time with the animals at Action for Animals Humane Society. The women’s basketball team did the Red Sand project in downtown Greensburg. The red sand put in pavement seams symbolizes the victims of human trafficking that’ve ‘fallen through the cracks.’ This awareness campaign is in partnership with The Blackburn Center domestic violence shelter.

Some groups even gave back directly to Seton Hill and completed projects on campus. Delight Ministries is an example of this. They lent their green thumbs to Sondra’s Garden, while another group of students helped plant and maintain the crop fields on campus.

One group of students came together to support Ray of Hope Westmoreland at their fundraising and memorial walk. Ray of Hope is Westmoreland County’s Suicide Awareness and Prevention Task Force. Their annual event at Twin Lakes fell on the same day as Labor of Love this year. Setonians helped in a variety of ways at the walk. Two students led the walk, a group helped serve lunch, and a couple helped pass out event materials.

Elena Cavanagh, a junior Physician Assistant major, was the site leader for the Ray of Hope walk. She chose to volunteer for this site because mental health awareness is something that’s important to her and her life. She shared that the solidarity shown between the community, families of victims, and survivors touched her heart.

“It really was moving seeing so many people come together and care for each other in their grief of losing a loved one,” Cavanagh shared. “Serving there felt like we were supporting people on a hard but important day of honoring and remembering their friends, family, and survivors.”

Cavanagh sees the value in coming together as Setonians to give back. She said, “Labor of love is so important to our campus identity and living the mission in the spirit of Elizabeth Ann Seton. This is one day where so many of us students can remember and partake in the legacy of the Sisters of Charity by being active members in serving the community.”

“Labor of love is so important to our campus identity and living the mission in the spirit of Elizabeth Ann Seton. This is one day where so many of us students can remember and partake in the legacy of the Sisters of Charity by being active members in serving the community.”