Rather than kicking up their feet to relax every weekend, Salisbury University's Girls On Top of the World members pull up their sleeves and get to work through community service.
The student-run organization's weekly meetings take place Sundays at 6 p.m. in Devilbiss Hall room 123, where the group plans volunteer opportunities at local nonprofits including the Wicomico County Humane Society, Life Crisis Center and HALO Center of Hope.
GOT members must collect a certain number of community service and fundraising points from participation in events, so most join early in the year.
Fun and friendship is at the center of the group's activities.
Vice President Abby Slovick said she and other volunteers were "having the time of [their] lives" during last semester's Big Event.
“I was getting people to honk at us,” she said.
Beyond volunteering, the group hosts paint nights, game nights, tie-dye events, day trips and hikes.
President Katelynn Boswell said bonding activities bring members closer, creating lasting friendships.
"We have what we call 'girls days' for active members: just events for members to get to know one another," Boswell said.
Now the club's president, Boswell first joined GOT in search of friends.
“Coming in as a freshman, I was really nervous about forming connections and finding my place here at Salisbury. Girls on Top of the World really helped me come out of my shell.”
Community Service Co-Chair Audrey McNeal plans volunteer and donation events for the club to attend throughout the semester.
Members volunteered at Camden Community Garden Saturday to pull weeds from over the Winter season. The garden is funded and maintained by students and local volunteers.
"Transitioning into the different seasons, it's important to freshen the garden up and get it ready for the spring," McNeal said. "We're getting rid of weeds so that the next group volunteering can plant fresh food and flowers."
The girls filled 12 buckets with weeds before using garbage bags for the excess, leaving the garden weed-free for spring planting.
GOT's week-long fundraiser, which raised $1,000 for the Life Crisis Center last semester, is still in the planning stage.
"We really just try to have fun in everything we do, and that includes community service,"
Slovick said.
To learn more about GOT, visit its involved@SU page or Instagram, @got_su.
By OLIVIA KUNTZ
Gull Life Editor
Featured images courtesy of Olivia Kuntz