All work and no play brings students success on spring break

By Alyssa Vidales

While a majority of college students spend their time working on their tans, some students choose to work on their careers or bettering their communities.

Jared Kirk spent his spring break at South Padre, Tx. While his toes may have been in the sand, Kirk’s idea of spring break was to volunteer his time to help others for a whole week.

Kirk, along with about 30 other Texas State Baptist Student Ministry (BSM) members, joined over 600 Texas BSM students in South Padre, Tx for Beach Reach, a spring break initiative that aims to assist spring breakers who spend their nights partying on the beach and are to help prevent his partying collegiate peers from drinking and driving and making destructive decisions.

From offering courtesy shuttle rides to serving free pancakes from midnight to 3 a.m. near beach bars, Kirk, a psychology major at Texas State, says working to serve others was a spring break well spent.

“I felt called to go. I wanted to do something good for the community, even though it wasn’t in San Marcos,” Kirk said.

Kirk says being around the South Padre parties reminded him of past spring breaks he has since turned away from.

“I used to be big in the spring break scene. I’m not into it anymore,” Kirk, 22, said. “A lot of college kids think spring break is all about sex, alcohol and self-indulgence. It’s sad to see them in that state.”

A BSM tradition since the 1990’s, Kirk said this was his first Beach Reach to participate in and will not be his last.

“A lot of people ask why I would sacrifice my spring break to do something like Beach Reach,” Kirk said. “I just tell them I want to serve people, make sure others don’t get in trouble and love on them.”