CVCC & Challenger High School SkillsUSA Students Serve Our Community

Celebration of Nations 2016 ImageSkillsUSA chapter members at Catawba Valley Community College and Challenger Early College High School provided manpower and volunteer coordination for the college’s recent Celebration of Nations multicultural festival held on the college campus.

SkillsUSA chapter members coordinated 50 volunteer staffers to assist with the festival which is sponsored by the college’s Office of Multicultural Affairs. The Celebration of Nations provided multicultural exhibits, cultural food, dance and entertainment. All activities were provided free with generous donations from CVCC, local businesses and restaurants.

Volunteers included CVCC and Challenger students, community organizations, SkillsUSA chapter members, Challenger International Club and Rotaract.

“Our results would not have been possible without the volunteers who gave up their time to be there that day,” stated Nick Joyner, CVCC SkillsUSA president. However, SkillsUSA involvement didn’t end there.

SkillsUSA chapter members also operated a fund drive at the Celebration of Nations to benefit the Safe Shelter for Battered Women. Provided by the Family Guidance Center of Hickory, the shelter is a safe location for victims of domestic violence. SkillsUSA accepted donations of personal care products, gift cards, and other toiletries for shelter residents at the festival. To find out more information about the shelter or to provide more donations, please visitwww.fgcservices.com.

“CVCC students and many people from different parts of the community attended,” said student Selena Kongmany, who is a member of the SkillsUSA community service team. “I think we were able to make a good impression on the community regarding our schools’ Celebrations of Nations event. We are excited to see how it will grow in the years to come and become a fun annual event for all members of our community!”

“The Celebration of Nations event was an opportunity to expand SkillsUSA impact in our community and we believe that the event will become an even bigger success in the years to come,” said Will Adkins, CVCC chapter vice president.

All CVCC SkillsUSA chapter activities are supported by the CVCC Foundation, Inc. For more information on CVCC’s SkillsUSA program, please contact Gary Muller at gmuller@cvcc.edu.