Rain or shine, Bobcat Build is 2600 students strong

Posted by Jayme Blaschke
University News Service
March 29, 2007

Students are invited to attend the kick-off rally for the Fifth Annual Bobcat Build, the largest service day in Texas State history and one of the largest in the nation, on Saturday, March 31 at 7:30 a.m. at Strahan Coliseum.

In case if inclement weather for outside jobsites, student teams will deliver tools to their assigned sites and reschedule their jobs. Many jobs are inside and will continue, rain or shine.

This year, thanks to a strong student organization and a new community planning team, a record 2,600 students representing 154 student organizations have signed up to participate at about 100 locations throughout San Marcos as part of the annual student "thank-you" to the community. Student registration begins at 7:30 a.m. and the kick-off program begins at about 8:10.

At the kick-off program at 8:10, student leaders from the Bobcat Build Student Planning Committee, President Denise Trauth, San Marcos Mayor Susan Narvaiz, and District 45 State Representative Patrick Rose will address the crowd. Country western band Texas Renegade will provide entertainment from 7:40 to 8:05.

Lists of site locations will be provided in case you'd like to visit some sites to see the students in action. Ten major projects, matched with community and university non-student teams, will be highlighted this year and will be visited by city and university officials.

The Texas State Office of Community Relations and LBJ Student Center¹s Student Volunteer Connection have teamed up with the Bobcat Build Student Planning Committee to match Texas State students with United Way of Hays County, the City of San Marcos, local schools, non-profit organizations, agencies and neighborhood associations for a day of service to brighten San Marcos and strengthen the relationship between the university and the city.

Around 8:30, teams of Texas State student volunteers will travel to job sites and get to work.  Projects include improving school playgrounds and assisting with church clean ups, checking light bulbs for Sights and Sounds of Christmas, clearing the path of destruction from the January tornado and ice storm, green space trail building, nursing home spring cleaning, painting low-income homes, landscaping and yard maintenance, neighborhood clean ups and more.

For more information, contact Texas State University Community Relations at 245-9645 or visit www.txstate.edu/community and click on "Bobcat Build."