In November, during the three-day Veterans Day weekend, volunteers will be helping veterans for Buffalo State’s Alternative Fall Break.

This program allows students to give their free time during breaks from school to help people in need. Participants will be staying at the First United Methodist Church on Buffalo’s West Side near Main Street. Activities will begin on Friday, Nov. 8.

The volunteers will meet on campus and travel to the church together. On Saturday, Nov. 9, volunteers will be working at St. Vincent DePaul Society. Volunteers will be split up into helping with their discount store, dining area, and warehouse facility.

Next, volunteers will help at the Western New York Veterans Housing Coalition, whose mission is to provide housing, employment and other services for veterans and people with special needs.

On Sunday, volunteers will help with the Veterans 5k Race by setting up, blockading and cleaning up after the race.

“We might not immediately see the impact, but we are impacting on a larger scale,” said Richie Willis, the event’s co-coordinator. “Someone might not come up to me and say ‘Thank you, Richie,’ but I know I’m making a difference.”

For those who are thinking about applying, be prepared to do a lot of work.

“Wear comfortable clothing,” Willis said. “Something that you’ll be comfortable in all day and won’t mind getting dirty.”

This is a drug- and alcohol-free trip and volunteers should be prepared to take public transportation and cook their own meals. First United Methodist Church doesn’t offer beds, but air mattresses and comforters are allowed.

“It’ll make sleeping on the floor a lot more comfortable,” Rachel Algbedo, co-coordinator of the program, said.

Alternative Fall Break began in the 1980s as an opportunity to give students something different to do during school breaks. It began with only a spring break option and then expanded to fall and winter breaks.

Willis said the main goal of the program is to “transform students into lifelong activists.”

By participating in Alternative Fall Break, students will be able to meet fellow volunteers and gain skills.

“When I went to Rochester I had never used a jackhammer before,” Willis said. “And now I tell my mom when to use one.”

On that trip to Rochester, volunteers got a chance to remodel a house. On a separate trip, volunteers built a trail from scratch.

“How many people can say they built something that will last over 100 years?” Willis said.

To participate, a $50 fundraising fee is required. For those who don’t have $50 to spare, there is an alternative way to pay.

“We’re going to have boxes of chocolate that you can sell to put toward your deposit,” Willis said. “There are 48 bars of chocolate and if you sell them all you get back $24.”

If volunteers sell more than one box of chocolate, their whole deposit and trip will be paid for. A $30 deposit is required upfront, and the remaining $20 can be given in before Nov. 1. The deadline for application is Friday, Oct. 18.

“It’s basically first come, first serve,” said Aurora Schunk, staff advisor of the program.

There are 15 open spots and if there are more applications than spots, a waitlist will be created in case anyone drops out of the program.

Alternative Winter Break is also offered, and will send students to Detroit, Mich., from Dec. 13-18 to work with Cass Community Social Services.

For more information about Alternative Fall and Winter Break, email [email protected]. To apply, visit the Volunteer and Service-Learning Center in Cleveland Hall 306.

Email: [email protected]