For immediate release: March 20, 2011

BLOOMSBURG — Nearly 500 Bloomsburg University of Pennsylvania students are expected to take part in The Big Event, a community service project, on Saturday, April 9, from 8:30 a.m. to noon.

Sponsored by BU’s Community Government Association (CGA), The Big Event is “a great opportunity to express our thanks to the Town of Bloomsburg,” said Anikka Brill, CGA president. “As Bloomsburg University students, we must remember that we are temporary visitors in a community of permanent residents.”

During The Big Event, BU students will tackle winter clean-up projects around town, concentrating on areas where students and local residents live side-by-side and public areas like Town Park and the Market Square fountain. Projects may include raking, weeding, sweeping and picking up trash. Students also will be available to help with projects at individual residences.

The day’s activities will commence with an opening ceremony at the Bloomsburg Town Park, where breakfast will be served and tools will be distributed. Members of campus organizations, including athletics, fraternities and sororities, as well as individual students, will be bused to locations around town. Local businesses have donated equipment or made financial contributions.

“The concept of the Big Event originated at Texas A&M and has become a widely recognized program throughout PASSHE (Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education). CGA is proud to have had such a high student turnout in last year’s inaugural Big Event and is excited to provide community service with similar numbers.”

For more information on The Big Event or to invite student volunteers to help with a project at a private residence, contact Brill at cgapres@bloomu.edu or call the BU Community Activities Office, (570) 389-4464.

Bloomsburg University is one of 14 universities in the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education. The university serves approximately 9,000 students, offering comprehensive programs of study in the colleges of Education, Business, Liberal Arts and Science and Technology.