HELENA — The 13th annual Americorps ServeMontana Symposium brought over 250 Americorps volunteers to Helena for the three-day event that began on Wednesday.
"We connect all our active service members across Montana in Americorps. We got folks coming together to meet each other and learn new skills that will help them serve Montana and in life. As well as our goal to have a little fun,” said Saraj Sadowski, the Executive Director of the Governor's Office of Community Service.
Sadowski says that this event is an opportunity to bring all the members of Americorps together and do good together.
The Symposium usually offers a food drive, in part of their community project, but this year due to COVID-19, the event will hold a hygiene drive.
The hundreds of Americorps participants are to bring their leftover, unused hotel toiletries to give to the Placer Pantry, a service of Good Samaritan Ministries.
"To increase their pantry is an opportunity for us while we are here without going out into the community quite yet," said Sadowski.
The Symposium also had letters to be given to deployed military members and healthcare workers at Shodair and its patients.
Sadowski says they hope to restart their food drive in the next few years.
"So we do like doing direct service, and we hope to get back out there in the field next time around," said Sadowski.
