Brandon Dill Photography
LENDING A HELPING HAND: Stephen Mangin ’28 helps prepare food at the St. Vincent De Paul Soup Kitchen.
Boxer Muhammad Ali declared, “Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on Earth.” MUS students are called to go above and beyond to serve the community; whether it is heading Mr. Large’s call to make a peanut butter and jelly sandwich or organizing a Civic Service Organization (CSO) food distribution, service comes in many forms at MUS.
Likewise, On Sept. 10, countless MUS students answered the call to serve the Memphis community in the 2025 Service Day, the highlight of the CSO Service Week.
Headed by longtime CSO Adviser Jonathan Large and CSO President Tom Crosby ’26, the 2025 Service Day built off last year’s success, inviting 404 MUS students, a new all-time Service Day participation record, to travel across Memphis to a wide variety of service projects from communing with the elderly to painting dilapidated fences.
“[2025 Service Day is] a testament to what this year will be like for the CSO,” said Senior Tom Crosby.
Service for the 2024-25 school year was one for the record books: breaking the all-time participation record for Service Day and reaching a staggering 100% participation rate from the Upper School.
Under the leadership of Crosby’s dedicated schoolwide team of homeroom representatives and executives, the CSO is poised to have another impactful year.
Senior Representative Sohum Valaulikar believes that the vast participation of the day will extend past Service Day. “Service Day was a good indication that we will have a lot more [future] participation, specifically from underclassmen. Roughly 90% of both the freshmen and sophomore classes participated.”
CSO Executive Glover Patton ’26 believes the same narrative. “With 404 participants beating last year’s number by 97 people, [Service Day] is a good indicator that the lower grades will be involved in service. The juniors and seniors had ambassador duties and such, but the extensive involvement of the underclassmen is a great indicator of a service-oriented future.”
The CSO is determined to continue growing this culture of service; having successfully acquired 11 grants last year to fund various service activities throughout the city of Memphis, the CSO has a great deal planned. From the annual No-Shave-November fundraiser to Angel Tree at Christmas and the beloved Hanley Zoo Project in the spring, service at MUS is continuing to flourish as more than a tradition: it’s a way of life.