Registration open for Sept. 10 First Serve Day

The community is invited to participate in the First Serve Day of Service on Sunday, Sept. 10, in the North Hill neighborhood of Akron. The day begins at 8:30 a.m. with a Sending Service at Trinity United Church of Christ at 915 North Main St. in Akron. Following the half-hour service, teams of volunteers will deploy to a variety of projects throughout the North Hill neighborhood. There are projects and experiences for all ages and ability levels, and lunch is provided.

New for 2023, in addition to traditional hands-on projects, First Serve 2023 will offer cultural immersion experiences to help expand participants’ appreciation and understanding of the rich and vibrant cultures that make up the North Hill community of Akron.

Since 2010, First Congregational Church of Hudson has organized and led the First Serve Day of Service, an annual interfaith day of worship through service. Working in conjunction with Temple Beth Shalom in Hudson, the Islamic Society of Kent and Akron and other faith partners and community organizations in Akron, teams of volunteers from diverse cultural and faith backgrounds work together for one day on a variety of projects in the North Hill neighborhood. In past years, close to 400 volunteers have participated in First Serve. This year’s goal is to have over 500 participants.

Kris Stoehr, co-director of First Serve, said “First Serve is more than a day of service. It’s an opportunity to build ongoing relationships with our neighbors and community organization partners in North Hill. We believe that relationships build hope, and our First Serve Day of Service is an important part of that relationship building. We invite anyone interested in getting to know their neighbors from North Hill and other faith communities in the area to join us!”

For project details and to register, visit joinfirstserve.com. ∞