SIU Student Recreation Center hosts first Community Day since 2020

CARBONDALE, Ill. (KBSI) – “It’s great! I can say, ‘hey, come climbing, get your cabinets filled up, have a great time out here, maybe make some friends and be a part of the community, and I get to be the guy standing there with the rope that’s just inviting you to come hang out.” 

This is SIU Student Rec Center Assistant Director Jakob Pasdertz, who was manning the rock-climbing wall station during Community Day at the Rec Center. It is the first such day the center has hosted since COVID. 

“Bringing it back after a few years feels really good because we can both fulfill a charitable mission here and bring our community out to our wonderful rec center,” Pasdertz said.

And he said the non-perishable food items collected on this day give those in need a little extra peace of mind. 

“To not have to worry about, ‘hey, where is that next meal going to come from?’ allows them to throw themselves a little bit further into their future and see a little bit more success there,” he said.

Member Services Coordinator Tyler Burroughs said this day encapsulates what the SIU community is all about and, in a way, reflects the spirit of Martin Luther King Jr.

“We’re trying to bring people together across campuses, people in here, as well, trying to come together to reach for a common goal,” Burroughs said.

And there were plenty of donations and plenty of visitors, even with single digit temperatures and snow outside, maybe even more incentive to come out to the rec center. 

“It’s 5 degrees, it’s snowing outside, and I think folks show that inherent value by being here,” Pasdertz said. “They’re showing us that that means something to them by the sheer fact that they got up, braved the cold, maybe even with a swimsuit in hand, made it all the way out to our rec center and then plunged themselves into our pool to come hang out and have a great day.”