SVSU student Audrey Speckhard, of Freeland, to spend holiday break volunteering in Salt Lake City

2014 Dec 3

Audrey Speckhard, of Freeland, will join a group of Saginaw Valley State University students participating in the Alternative Breaks program, which sends students to volunteer across the globe during traditional school break periods such as the upcoming holiday recess.

Speckhard, a biochemistry major, will travel with eight other SVSU students to Salt Lake City, from Dec. 14 to Dec. 20, when they will help the organization International Rescue Committee provide food and shelter to others.

"I hope to learn how to interact with all different types of people and bring a group of strangers together to become one close-knit group. I hope to gain leadership skills as well as fast-thinking problem-solving skills and communication skills," Speckhard said.

The initiative is one of seven opportunities being organized through SVSU's Alternative Breaks, a student-run program.

The initiatives include students traveling to Harlan, Ky., where they will help the organization Harlan Community Action Agency organize a soup kitchen and perform house repairs; to Miami, where students will help the organization Ronald McDonald House organize activities for children and families; and to New York City, where students will help the organization Gods Love We Deliver to provide food, shelter and meals for ill people.

The other Alternative Breaks initiatives include students traveling to Salt Lake City, where they will help the organization International Rescue Committee provide food and shelter to others; to Tucson, Arizona, where they will help Habitat for Humanity with building housing developments; to Springs, Fla. where students will help the organization Peace River Refuge And Ranch care for large exotic animal habitats; and to Asheville, N.C. to help a local YMCA with youth programming initiatives.