From preparing meals at food banks to cleaning up riverbanks, 1,300 UCLA volunteers fanned out across Los Angeles on Saturday, Sept. 27, rolling up their sleeves to make a difference and remind Bruins and the city why service is at the heart of the university\u2019s mission.<\/p>\n
An annual rite of passage, UCLA Volunteer Day<\/a> starts off the new school year by inviting new and returning Bruins, along with faculty, staff and alumni, to forge connections with local partners and L.A.\u2019s diverse communities while tackling real-world projects in their own backyard.<\/p>\n \u201cToday is the perfect opportunity to connect with the Los Angeles community, with fellow Bruins and even with total strangers,\u201d Chancellor Frenk said at the morning kickoff on campus. \u201cFind a stranger, build a connection, and be the light in our world.\u201d<\/p>\n This year, the 17th iteration of Volunteer Day, volunteers bedecked in \u201cBruins Give Back\u201d T-shirts spread that light across 45 locations, from senior centers and elementary schools to veterans\u2019 facilities, homeless shelters and community gardens. Chancellor Frenk and UCLA students joined Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and other local and state officials at Hope the Mission in the San Fernando Valley, making meals for unhoused people and those in interim shelters as part of a collaborative effort between UCLA\u2019s Volunteer Center and the city\u2019s Shine LA volunteer initiative.<\/p>\n At Los Angeles National Cemetery, next to the Westwood campus, UCLA volunteers \u2014 including student veterans with the UCLA Veteran Resource Center<\/a> \u2014 scrubbed and rinsed the grave markers of military veterans and were encouraged to reflect on the meaning of service and sacrifice.<\/p>\n