At Starr’s Mill, most students are aware of or are in Beta Club. The club members help set up and clean for school events such as homecoming, as well as write appreciation cards for every faculty member for teacher appreciation week. But Beta Club does more than that. The club wants to serve every person in its community it can reach, not just students and faculty within Starr’s Mill.  

Not every member joins because they are dedicated to selfless service. “Like most people, I joined partially because being in the Beta Club looks good on college applications, but I stayed because of the opportunities the club offers to help people,” junior Sarah Kelly said.

Kelly has served in her community through Beta Club by volunteering at food banks, helping at various Fayette County School competitions, and donating toys, food, and books. Other students may chose to serve by volunteering at local events, school competitions, or in community programs.

Though many members may have joined for college applications, through the club they realized that they enjoyed serving their community. The club offers opportunities to create relationships with people the members may not have met otherwise.

There are a variety of organizations and service projects for individual interests of Beta Club members. Typically the Beta Club has 8-10 different people or organizations asking for help each month. “That is a huge number and those people consistently contact us after their event and say, ‘Your members were incredible’,” co-sponsor of Beta Club Kelly Rock said.

A small amount of effort from each member can make a big difference in the community. “I feel like a lot of members don’t realize when they think, ‘Oh I just need to get my hours and then I am done,’ that they really make a serious impact, even with just 10 hours of service,” president of the Starr’s Mill Beta Club Colin Kelly said. With over 400 active members the Beta Club at Starr’s Mill does a minimum of 8,000 service hours every year.

“I have stayed in the Beta Club for the last 3 years because of the positive impact on the community,” junior Ally Marshall said. Hearing the positive feedback from the people they helped impacts the members by reminding what a difference they can make.

This positive feedback from the community shows that Beta Club is not just about college applications.“I think when the people are saying, ‘Thank you so much we could not have done it without you’,” co-sponsor of the Beta Club Kristin Peavyhouse said. “That lets the students know how much they are appreciated.”