September 6, 2017

Day of Caring

UCSB volunteers will team up to clean Isla Vista as part of United Way’s campaign to improve neighborhoods

Jim Medina

Joining forces for a community cause, UC Santa Barbara faculty, staff, students and friends will spruce up Isla Vista on Saturday, Sept. 16, in collaboration with United Way of Santa Barbara County’s annual Day of Caring — the largest single-day volunteer event in the Tri-County region.

Now in it’s 26^th year, Day of Caring includes cleanup efforts throughout Santa Barbara, Goleta and Carpinteria, with more than 1,400 people expected to participate.

“My husband, 5-year-old daughter and I all participated in Day of Caring last year — it is a fantastic way to give back to Isla Vista,” said Jennifer Lofthus, a policy coordinator in UCSB Administrative Services. “We’re all looking forward to participating again this year.”

Coordinated by the Isla Vista Parks & Recreation District’s Adopt-A-Block program, UCSB teams will be assigned various tasks in Isla Vista, such as window cleaning, gardening, painting, general maintenance and picking up trash. Managing the densely populated community prevents waste runoff from polluting neighborhoods, beaches and the ocean, according to the district. The cleanup effort runs from 9 a.m. to noon.

As a bonus, people who sign up for the Isla Vista project by Wednesday, Sept. 13, receive a UCSB baseball cap, as well as a Day of Caring T-shirt provided to all volunteers. Sign-up forms are available at http://www.ia.ucsb.edu/uw/day-of-caring-signup.aspx. For additional information, email united.way@ia.ucsb.edu or call 805-893-7382.

A continental breakfast and kick-off rally will be held for all Day of Caring volunteers at 8 a.m. Saturday at the Ben Page Youth Center, 4540 Hollister Ave. in Santa Barbara. Volunteers are asked to park at San Marcos High School, 4750 Hollister Ave., where free shuttles will be available to take people to the youth center. More volunteer opportunities are available at http://www.unitedwaysb.org/2017-day-caring.

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