Ripon College students, staff, and faculty are working together to make our world a better place. Collaboration is the name of the game.
Elizabeth Brown, '13
During the summer of 2010 I had the opportunity to intern for the Ripon Community Thrift Store and Food Pantry working with the underrepresented poor in the community. Without the help of the Office of Community Engagement I would not have had this opportunity and I am unduly grateful for it now. At the end of the summer I found myself more capable of engaging all types of individuals, helping people fill needs, influencing long-term goals, and successfully implimenting organizational systems. I also came away inspired by the spirit that volunteer work instills in you. Helping someone achieve a personal goal, feel better about his or her situation, or simply make them smile, is an unobvious reward that makes a difference. It certainly made a difference for me.
Jesse DeAngelis, '11
By doing a little of everything--data entry, answering phones, calling volunteers, and going on home visits, I learned first-hand how a non-profit operates. The two friendly women who run the office in Marathon County put so much time and effort into the cause; it was truly inspiring. However, my favorite part of the internship was getting to interact with the elderly and disabled care receivers themselves: seeing their smiles when I came to visit, or their looks of gratitude when I cleaned their homes. I would recommend volunteering at Faith in Action to people of all ages who are looking to directly improve the lives of others and have fun while doing it!Tracy Waldinger, '11
Since my first year at Ripon, I have been volunteering at the Ripon Public Library in various capacities. For two years I diligently marked books that qualified for the Accelerator Reader program. I also organized volunteers to help with the book sale, library events, and book recycling. Since my sophomore year, I have planned, organized, and executed events for TV Turnoff Week in April. I enjoy volunteering at the library and helping others.Tiny Terror on The Square
The Ripon College Office of Community Engagement hosted it’s 4th Annual Tiny Terror on the Square in 2011. Tiny Terror is a safe alternative for Halloween for kids that occurs downtown Ripon between Roadhouse Pizza and College Cinema. Every year there are games, pumpkin painting, trick-or-treating on Watson Street, and a costume parade and contest. New and exciting activities this year were a hayride, a location for photo opportunities, and pumpkin bowling. April Agamaite, an alum of Ripon College and event founder, said “Tiny Terror is student-organized and is run with strong community support. We couldn’t do it without our great partners and our very generous sponsors.” Dawn Burnside, a former volunteer for the project-planning of Tiny Terror on the Square, says that “Tiny Terror is a good showcase of how the college can work with the community and how something fun and successful can come out of it.” Rebecca Shackleton, also a former volunteer co-planner of the event, says “I got involved because this is a great community bonding experience and an opportunity to socialize and interact with residents and business owners.” 
Supervised by many volunteers, the evening is full of all kinds of activities that are kid-friendly and safe. These activities give children experiences that may only come once a year. Tiny Terror is open to children from infants to 5th grade; last year’s event hosted about 300 kids, and this year the coordinators are expecting about 300-325 children.