Students on campus have acted as elves since the inception of the Holiday Helpers project in 1994 by Victoria Futch, coordinator of the office of volunteer services, and Eileen Sconyers, administrative secretary for the departments of sociology and anthropology. After receiving several names of people in need for the holiday season, Futch and Sconyers collaborated on the best way to help and at the same time, get the students, faculty and staff of GSU involved. They decided the best way to accomplish both goals was to put the names on a tree and have those interested in helping take a name. The names for the Holiday Helpers Tree are sent to the coordinators, Futch and Sconyers, from the Department of Family and Children Services, Senior Companions Organization, Concerted Services, Joseph's Home for Boys, Ogeechee Home Health, Home Bound Services, and other social service organizations in the area. The project has even reached people in outerlying areas, Sconyers said.
Student organizations contribute to the program by either making donations, or adopting the project.
Gamma Phi Beta Honor Society students volunteer by taking names and donations and receive credit for the hours they volunteer to the project. Donating presents and money is not the only way that families may be helped. In recent years, some residence halls and student organizations have adopted families for the whole academic year. The residents of Veazey Hall, about two or three years ago, adopted a single parent family with two teenage daughters who had both gotten pregnant and dropped out of high school, said Futch. One of the girls went on to Ogeechee Tech and the other took her SATs to attend school here.