sure that the good works go
beyond graduation. Stanford
School of Law recently an
nounced a program of inexpen
sive loans for graduates who
choose a lower-paying public
service practice; the school
will even retire the debt if
the young attorney sticks
with public service for several
years. Many states are also
happy to stretch their re
sources with student labor:
later this month Minnesota’s
legislature will consider a plan
to grant tuition credits in
exchange for extended hitches
in a state community-service
program.
Fish heads: Beyond what these
programs do for the schools or
even for the people they serve,
volunteerism opens the eyes of
the volunteer. DePauw senior
Robyn Ratcliffe recalls her month in
Kenya: "I bathed in a river. 1 had fish heads
for lunch. I had diarrhea for weeks.” After
the Third World, sorority life was a massive
culture shock, she says: "You come back to
campus, and people are asking each other
what color shoes to wear.” Says Tulane
junior Mark Bourgeois, who works with the
■nmi' rv ->inn
Dedicated feet: World Fixxi Day drew 'stamp out hunger’crusaders from across the nation
school’s Hunger Action Team, "It trivial
izes my problems to see what is going on
in the world."
Through these epiphanies, the helpers
sometimes become the helped. When some
one holds the hand of an ailing, lonely pen
sioner or comforts a battered child, poverty
and suffering assume an inescapable, hu
man fact* These are memories that will
likely linger—and they increase the odds
that, along with status cars and jobs, stu
dents may also strive for u social cause in
later life.
John ScHWAtTZu'ifA Todu Uakk«tt
in Washington. DC. CumsToiMtH Blows
in iVVii' Orleans. Jr.rrr.Hv Re m N in (Imiul Hapuls.
and F e L i c i a K o K n b i. e H in (amhndgt
Spreading th« Word
Wayne Meiael—a.k.a. the
Johnny Appleseed of vol
unteerism—lives a life that’s
an odd mix of high tech and
low clan. As he travels the
country in search of fertile
environments for communi
ty organizations, the 27-year
old Meisel crashes on student
couches and wears one of his
two outfits: a sweat suit or
a blue business suit. Then
there's his Macintosh com
puter, which he plugs in
whenever he has a moment
—even during airport lay
overs—for some quick letters
or work on the latest publica
tions from the Campus Out
reach Opportunity League
(COOL), which Meiael found
ed in 1965.
A preacher’s son with a
lopsided grin, Meisel is tak
ing local action nationwide:
COOL’s presence is now felt
on about 150 campuses.
When he was studying at
Harvard, Meisel says, he
accepted the conventional
wisdom that his peers were
job-obsessed automatons. But
when he decided he wanted
to coach a soccer team for
Cambridge youngsters and
tried to recruit others, he was
astounded by the response:
160 students signed up
first night. Meisel says he
gan to believe that "given
TnriH m • Wayne Meiael
CHAftUB UCDfOKD
proper leadership and struc
ture and support, students
will get involved.”
Two years after graduating
in 1982, Meisel trekked 1,500
miles on foot to 67 colleges
between Maine and Wash
ington, D.C., to spread the
word. Eager as a Newfound
land pup, Meisel has a knack
for infecting others with
his enthusiasm, sowing soup
kitchens wherever he goes.
COOL tries to get students
to individualize their commu
mty action, we try
to get them to think
about their strengths,
think about what it
is that makes their
community tick,” he
says. It was his notion,
for instance, to link
Harvard "houses,” as
some of the dorms
are called, to sever
al neighborhoods. Al
though he is aware
that the apolitical
nature of communi
ty service draws fire
from gome activist quarters,
Meisel insists that the com
monality that nonpartisan
status affords is crucial to a
group's strength.
M| Um: These days, Meisel
is back crisscrossing the coun
try by air to conduct regional
workshops. COOL now has
Washington offices, a staff
of five and a comprehensive
guide to starting community
service programs (page 29).
Much of their funding comes
from private foundations and
federal volunteer programs
like ACTION/VISTA. COOL
also helps sponsor the Nation
al Hunger Clean-Up and a
summer internship program
in Appalachia.
Despite having hit the big
time in terms of visibility,
Meisel still eschews expense
accounts and hotel beds. "It's
gotta be low budget, it's
gotta be living on couches,"
he insists. "You do better
work when you're sleeping
on couches.”
John Schwartz