UVa students give to community

There are hundreds of reasons why the Charlottesville-Albemarle County area is special, but how about three million reasons? That is the number of community service hours University of Virginia students have provided the area since the creation of Madison House, now one of the largest student-led volunteer centers in the country.

Madison House is a community treasure. Each year, more than 3,000 UVa students give about 110,000 hours of service, valued at $2.2 million, to the Charlottesville-Albemarle area.

As Madison House celebrates its 40th anniversary this academic year, area residents may be surprised to learn that the organization’s beginning can be traced to the devastation that Hurricane Camille inflicted on Nelson County. The storm dumped 28 inches of rain in eight hours, swelling rivers and covering homes in landslides. Some of the first responders were UVa students from a newly formed volunteer organization, then called the Masters and Fellows of Madison Hall.

Today Madison House maintains long-term partnerships with about 90 community agencies, including public schools, nursing homes, environmental organizations and refugee groups to develop service programs that are client-specific, tailored to a wide diversity in age, economic status and ethnic/racial background. Community agencies estimate that Madison House volunteers positively affect the lives of more than 17,000 individuals each year.

Without a doubt, the UVa students who volunteer through Madi-son House are a positive force in our community.