All HandsOn Deck - November 2026

Welcome back to your favorite newsletter! Hopefully, everyone made it through midterms unscathed. I know everyone is really busy and stressed right now, but as a junior in college, I’ve found that the best way to relieve stress and harness good energy is with some good ol’ fashioned service!

Luckily for you, we have lots coming up for the latter half of the semester and the upcoming holiday season. Keep reading to find the perfect fall volunteering opportunity for you.

However, if you’re not convinced, you can read the Let’s Talk Service! to hear just how amazing service is from yours truly, HandsOn student coordinator, Ashlyn Simonson.

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Let's talk service

Hi everyone! My name is Ashlyn, and I’m one of the HandsOn student coordinators. You read my writing every month, but you've never read my story. I want to explain why I'm here!

I’ve been involved in service since middle school, and it was love at first sight. When I went on a school trip to a conference, I was mostly there to miss math and get a free t-shirt. I was, quite frankly, annoyed when I learned that they wanted us to do community service. They took us to a women’s shelter, where we were sorting donated clothes. As I was chatting with my friends, I pulled out a baby onesie. I asked why it was in the bag, and our advisor told me that lots of women bring their kids with them into the shelter.

It was like a light switched on for me. At that moment, I realized just how important it is to volunteer and do my part. I fell in love with service and helping uplift my community. Fast forward ten years, and I’m working for HandsOn and getting my Nonprofit Leadership minor, with the dream of making a career out of a passion I found completely by accident.

Volunteer opportunities

Mobile Food Distributions

If you are looking for a way to volunteer that’s meaningful, impactful to the community, and fun to participate in, it’s great news that you’ve discovered Mobile Food Distribution. A monthly on-campus event dedicated to reducing hunger, it’s the perfect opportunity to spend a couple hours giving back to the community!

We would love to see you at our last MFD of the semester on November 13th. However, if you can’t make it, or if our volunteering spots fill up, we will be back in the spring!

Volunteers are needed from 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. and will help distribute food, register patrons, and direct traffic. Volunteer spots are limited; register to volunteer at this link.

If you have any questions, email HandsOn at handson@ksu.edu.

Nonprofit Leadership - Pitch Night

This semester, HandsOn is partnering with Nonprofit Leadership to create an opportunity that we think is very exciting! We are inviting YOU, the students, to pitch us your own service ideas for a chance to fund and implement the event of your dreams!

I hope you’ve filled out the application form that was due October 28th, but if not, we still encourage you to come watch the incredible pitches at 6:30 pm on November 11th. We need your help, as we are automatically awarding a grant to the audience favorite! However, if you did get your application done, we can’t wait to see what you’ve come up with. Remember: dream it, pitch it, and let’s do it!

Students can learn more by emailing the HandsOn team at handson@ksu.edu.

K-State First Book Dialogues: Find Your Calling

K-State students, faculty and staff are also invited to serve as small-group facilitators at Find Your Calling on Tuesday, Nov. 17. This one-night event is centered on the K-State First common read book, "Callings" by Dave Isay. Facilitators will guide conversations inspired by "Callings," helping participants reflect on their experiences, share perspectives and build connections with others. Training will be provided, and facilitators will receive a Find Your Calling T-shirt.

Facilitators must attend one of the following in-person training sessions in the Leadership Studies Building:

• 1:00 - 2:00 p.m. Friday, Oct. 30, Room 123
• 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2, Room 123
• 4:00 - 5:00 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2, Room 126
• 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 3, Room 126

If this opportunity interests you, you can sign up to be a facilitator here!

HandsOn Day of Service

HandsOn is extremely dedicated to serving our local Manhattan community, but every once in a while, we get the exciting opportunity to take our volunteers on the road!

Join us on November 14th for a fun day trip to Allen County, Kansas, for a community clean-up adventure. Breakfast, lunch, and dinner will be provided, and volunteers will return to Manhattan around 6 pm. The day will be spent cleaning up the community by raking leaves, picking up trash, assisting residents, and more!

If you are interested in joining our adventure, you can follow sign up on this Qualtrics form!

Holiday Events - Flint Hills Discovery Center

As we mentioned in the intro, we understand just how busy this time of year can be. So, if November just doesn’t work for you, we are letting you in on some wonderful opportunities in December! The Flint Hills Discovery Center puts on some great events for the holiday season, and they need your help to make that magic happen! Not to mention, there are lots of events to go around! Feel free to volunteer for any of these events, and even more than one.

• Breakfast with Santa, day 1 - Sat, Dec. 5th - 7:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m., breakfast included
• Breakfast with Santa, day 2 - Sat, Dec. 12th - 7:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m., breakfast included
• Family New Year's Eve - Thu, Dec. 31st - 5:00 p.m.-8:30 p.m.

If you are interested in volunteering, you can learn more on the FHDC website on the Breakfast with Santa page or the Family New Year’s Eve page. To sign up, email their amazing Volunteer Coordinator, Kristen, at kristen.hoffman@cityofmhk.com.

HandsOn updates

Learn what HandsOn has been up to!

October was a spook-tacular month here at HandsOn! We held our Wildcat Pause Mobile Food Distribution, where over 40 volunteers helped us serve 171 households. We also saw some awesome ideas for Pitch Night at our information session. We can’t wait to see what you guys come up with, and if you are also interested in seeing all the awesome ideas, don’t miss Pitch Night on November 11th! Another thing we've been working on is a comprehensive list of all the nonprofits in the Manhattan area, organized by service area and complete with a short description of its target audience and information to get involved. Keep an eye out; we are working on publishing it soon!

Thanks for reading the November edition of All HandsOn Deck.

Email the HandsOn Kansas State Team with any questions regarding the enewsletter.