Thirty non-profit organizations from Conway and surrounding areas came to UCA on Nov. 18 to search for people willing to donate their time to community service rather than a few spare dollars.

UCA’s Event Planning Class and Department of Speech and Public Relations hosted the university’s first ever iVolunteer Fair from 12 to 3 p.m. in the Student Center Ballroom.

The Boys and Girls Club of Faulkner County, the mid-South chapter of Make-A-Wish Foundation, Big Brothers Big Sisters program and Soul Food Cafe Mission were just a few of the organizations that set up booths requesting the help of students, faculty and residents of Conway.

The room was broken into different categories and color schemes dealing with the main purpose of the organizations. Blue was for general, yellow for youth, red for health and green for life services.

“[The Make-A-Wish Foundation] grants wishes for children ages two and a half to 18 years old who have life-threatening medical conditions in order to enrich the human experience with hope, strength and joy,” Katherine Vasilos, program service intern for the Make-A-Wish Foundation, said.

There are nearly 92 kids in Arkansas who have made a wish with the foundation and are still waiting for someone to grant that wish for them, Vasilos said.

“Without volunteers, we wouldn’t exist; we wouldn’t bring joy to kids,” she said.

Vasilos also said volunteers are important to the Make-A-Wish foundation because, “we can’t grant wishes as quickly as possible without them.”

Volunteers can assist in single events, fundraisers that are used to grant wishes and the Heart-Filled Wish-a-Thon. They can also participate as wish givers.

The Soul Food Cafe Mission is a Christian organization that serves meals to the needy on Tuesdays at the Four Winds Church gym. The organization is looking for volunteers to call various businesses to ask to donate food and items. They are also looking for students who have skills to create a Web site to take the organization worldwide.

Junior Emily Hester is a staff member of the Event Planning Class that organized the iVolunteer Fair.

“Students don’t have money during this time of year but they do have time. So this event will allow students to give their time [to an organization],” Hester said.

The organizations were chosen based on location, whether or not they were a non-profit organization and various surveys that were done online.

Students involved in planning the event also brainstormed in class about which organizations they would like to have at the fair.

They were able to fund the fair through donations from a number of sponsors including Aramark, Stoby’s, Nu:U Day Spa and First State Bank.

Hester said the next iVolunteer fair will be up to the professor.

“Since we have important contact information with organizations and sponsors it will be easier for next year’s professors,” Hester said.