By Marcela Berrios, Hannah Storm Journalism Intern 

What began as a way to celebrate Father Hesburgh’s 90th birthday last year will become an annual event this May when the NDAA again hosts the Hesburgh Month of Service.

About 115 alumni groups (more than 4,000 volunteers) across the nation participated in last year’s event, spending more than 15,000 hours working to benefit a variety of shelters, churches, schools, children’s homes, community centers and the U.S. troops abroad.

The NDAA launched the month-long service campaign to celebrate the 90th birthday of University President Emeritus Rev. Theodore M. Hesburgh, C.S.C. Because of its success, the Alumni Association decided to make the month of service an annual tradition.

“Right now we have a few ND clubs registered, but we are hoping to surpass last year’s total of 115 groups,” says Crystal Prentice, service coordinator for the Alumni Association.

Clubs and classes interested in participating in the 2008 Hesburgh Month of Service can register here.

“If a club or class needs an idea for a service project, we can work with them to develop something to fit their needs and the needs of their community,” Prentice says.

Participating groups also have the option of partnering with local organizations or service agencies, like Catholic Charities or the Alliance for Catholic Education (ACE).

“We are encouraging our clubs and classes to contact these affiliate agencies and partner with them to target the needs in their local communities and find areas in which they want to give back,” Prentice continues.

Catholic Charities has local affiliate agencies in all major cities across the United States. The Alliance for Catholic Education has communities of teachers that serve at under resourced Catholic schools in cities across America.

For more information or to register a service project, click here.