Our Lady of the Lake University students continue a long-standing tradition of caring for one of the university’s closest neighbors—Elmendorf Lake this Thursday, Oct. 8, from noon to 1:30 p.m.
Led by Dr. Jesse Harasta, director of OLLU’s Center for Service-Learning and Volunteerism, lake cleanups are held about once or twice each semester in partnership with the San Antonio River Authority, the official steward of the lake’s waters. Volunteers are provided gloves, grabber tools and trash bags and work throughout the area to remove litter and debris.
Harasta said the cleanups have been part of the Center’s work for as long as anyone can remember.
“It’s a natural project for us given the proximity of the lake, the constant need and the desire for our students to have a park that they can enjoy,” Harasta said.
The connection is particularly meaningful for OLLU. Elmendorf Lake predates the university and, Harasta noted, its beauty was one of the reasons the Sisters of Divine Providence selected the location that became OLLU.
“We are Our Lady of the LAKE for a reason,” Harasta said. “Clearly the Lake has given so much to our community, it makes sense that we take care of it in return.”
While the cleanups are open to everyone, the Center often partners with academic classes to add a service-learning component. This semester, students in Professor Roberts’ Principles of Marketing class, MKTG 3331, are participating as part of their work with the San Antonio River Authority’s Westside Creeks Ecosystem Restoration Project. The cleanup gives students an opportunity to see firsthand both the River Authority’s work and the environmental challenges facing waterways in OLLU’s own neighborhood.
Environmental stewardship has also become a growing focus of OLLU’s service-learning efforts. As a Laudato Si’ campus, OLLU has committed to Pope Francis’ call to care for “our common home,” Harasta said.
Recent cleanups have also incorporated art and culture through OLLU’s International Folk Culture Center. This year, volunteers will begin their work with a performance ceremony by Mazayolotli Danza celebrating water, land and community.
Amber Ortega, coordinator of the International Folk Culture Center, said incorporating the arts helps participants develop a deeper relationship with the place they are serving.
“Before volunteers get to the work of cleaning up, they will be invited to engage in an act of ritual, song, and community,” Ortega said, with each element reminding participants of “the value of the water, the lake, and the land to our existence.”
Ortega said dance, music and other artistic traditions can also bring meaning and joy to environmental work while connecting participants to the history and cultural heritage of San Antonio’s West Side.
For Harasta, however, removing litter is only one part of the lesson. He hopes students come to understand that a cleanup addresses a visible symptom while larger environmental challenges require broader, systemic solutions.
Success, he said, means not only a cleaner Elmendorf Lake, but also students who feel more connected to it, to better understand the complexities involved in caring for the natural environment surrounding their university.
Head down to the lake this Thursday to sign in and clean up!
