This year, Billings Central hosted its first ever Service Fair. The event was held in the gym and featured fourteen different community service organizations based in Billings. These organizations included Riverstone Health, Vitalant Blood Donation, and the Montana Audubon Center, among others. Each organization set up a table with business cards, information packets, and a current volunteer who explained how students could also volunteer. The Catholic Culture Committee organized the Service Fair with the goal of inspiring students to get more involved in their community by showing different opportunities for service.
Sophomores left to right, Maggie Baker, Beth Baker, Ella Mccoy, Maycee Krebs, and Emerson Dull at the service fair (Abby Breetz)
While service hours are a graduation requirement for Billings Central, the bigger goal of this event was to make community service feel more meaningful and natural from a religious perspective. As freshmen theology teacher Mrs. Wahl explained, “It’s not just something that they feel like they have to do. It’s something that we want to instill in them as Catholics and as Christians.”
Students signing up for community service at the service fair. (Abby Breetz)
The Service Fair garnered strong participation from both students and community members. “Our students were very interested and asked great questions,” Mrs. Wahl stated. Because of the success from the event this year, Central hopes to host more Service Fairs in the future. Overall, the Service Fair helped students see service not just as a requirement but as a chance to make a real impact.
Sophomores at a table during the service fair. (Abby Breetz)
