Clubs & Organizations at W&M

Hello!
In my introductory post, I mentioned being involved in a few organizations around campus. Today, I thought I would share a little more about them!

First, let me just say that I am about as shy and introverted as it gets, so getting involved on campus for any reason was particularly intimidating. With that said, the overwhelming enthusiasm and kindness I received from the students when I stepped out was comforting and made the process a bit easier.

There is an abundance of clubs and organizations on campus, and with more than 450 of them, the hard part is not the inability to find one that suits your interests, but having the time to fit in as many as possible! I began my search at the club expo on the last day of orientation week. At the expo held in Kaplan Arena, the clubs set up tables with information about what they do. The entire building is packed with enthusiastic students who are offering opportunities for everyone! When it came time for me to choose, Agape Christian Fellowship and Campus Kitchens were two organizations I felt most excited to join.

Agape Christian Fellowship (ACF) is a collection of wonderful, caring, and hilarious human beings that are passionate about God. The kindness the students show toward everyone in and out of ACF, and their ability to make anyone automatically feel like you’re best friends, made it easy for me to join the ACF family. I am always inspired by the leadership’s dedication to maintain and improve the quality of the Fellowship. One of the things I love most about this group is that it’s more like a family than a club. Outside of ACF activities, you will always find its members studying or eating together, playing games, going on different excursions on the weekend, and even meeting up with each other over school breaks.

ACF members out on a Saturday morning hike! Photo credit: Daniel Kim

The sense of camaraderie I felt even made me feel comfortable enough to become a small group leader (A shy person voluntarily taking on a leadership role? Shocking, I know). As a small group leader, I encourage a group of young women to increase their faith by providing opportunities to build relationships with each other through bonding activities. I have had a great experience as a leader so far!

Campus Kitchen is a service organization that provides meals for low-income families around the Williamsburg area. Twice a week, volunteers cook meals which are then delivered by additional volunteers to individuals and families. 100 meals go out to the communities every week. I was drawn to this organization because it combined my love for the culinary arts and desire to serve others. After a semester of volunteering, I obtained a food safety management certification to become a shift leader and manage cooking the meals. I love the challenge of entering the pantry to see what food was donated and curate what meals I can make from them. As a Kinesiology major with a minor in Public Health, studying nutrition has been a big part of my academic preparation. Being part of Campus Kitchen has become a learning opportunity for someone who wants to do nutrition-related public health work. Campus Kitchen was the perfect fit for me.

If you are looking for a college that has incredible clubs and organizations to join (even for the shy at heart), William & Mary has so many opportunities for you! Joining organizations has not only been a fun way to be a part of the Tribe but has helped me grow and step outside of my shy self into a sincere community of people. I never imagined I would make so many friends and connect with so many people before coming to William & Mary. I know that any student who transfers here will have the same chance to experience all the wonderful opportunities the Tribe family has to offer.

Until next time,
Esther Ty ’20