Members of the St. Edward’s University community exceeded their goal for the 125 Service Challenge, which began last year to commemorate the university’s 125th anniversary.

St. Edward’s students, faculty, staff and alumni completed 92,048 hours of service, 17,048 hours above their goal of 75,000 hours.

The university honored various members of the St. Edward’s community who participated in the challenge at a reception held in the Mabee Ballrooms on Feb. 16.

Lou Serna, an assistant director of Campus Ministry and the coordinator of the 125 Service Challenge, spoke to congratulate participants for their service. President George Martin also spoke at the reception about the university’s commitment to service.

Of the 71 individuals who participated in the challenge, 50 were students, six were faculty, seven were staff members and eight were alumni.

Each person who participated was asked to personally complete 125 hours of service. However, some went beyond the 125 hours. Senior Char Wichman, for example, completed 143 hours, and Professor James McGuffee completed 130 hours.

“I value service, and part of the reason I value that service is the inspiration I receive from the men I know personally and who give a lifetime of service as members of the Congregation of Holy Cross,” McGuffee said. “If these men can dedicate their entire lives to community and helping others, I certainly can donate part of my time to help others.”

Sophomore Mitch Harris, the service chair for Alpha Psi Omega (an Alpha Eta chapter), the university’s service fraternity for theater majors, said he completed about 200 hours of service.

“I was already involved in service here [at St. Edward’s], so I figured it would be a good challenge to see if I could hit that 125 mark and even go beyond it,” Harris said.

Participants in the challenge logged their service hours through a website called myVolunteerPage.com.

Participants logged service hours they completed from a variety of organizations. Wichman volunteered at her local church and with Habitat for Humanity. Brother Larry Atkinson, C.S.C., who also participated in the challenge, volunteered with Catholic Charities Food Pantry. Senior Carlos Mendoza volunteered with Austin Children’s Museum and St. Ignatius, Martyr, Catholic School in Austin.

Not all volunteer hours were completed in Austin. Wichman and a group from St. Edward’s Campus Ministry completed service in Fort Portal, Uganda, for two weeks.

Although the university did exceed its service goal, some who participated believe that it’s not the number of hours completed that matters.

“I don’t think that volunteering is ever just about a single final number,” McGuffee said. “I think that more people volunteered because of this program. Giving back is part of the St. Edward’s culture and as long as we keep people involved that’s a good thing.”