SERVICE BEAKERS
On August 6, 2021, St. Michael’s Church presented a $500 check to Joey Milazzo, one of the several St. Michael’s parishioners who started Service Beakers, a non-profit program designed to introduce Grade 3-5 students to high-level scientific concepts, vocabulary, and topics. Service Beakers began because of Isaac Lund’s love of science. Calling on several of his classmates from St. Michael School Class of 2019, (Joey Milazzo, Alex Macomber, Leo Ouyang, and MJ DIFiore), this program has been a true labor of love. Love of science, yes, but also a love of God and a desire to serve Him using the gifts He has given.
Currently Service Beakers has over 40 volunteers representing four different area high schools.
According to the group, science-related experiences offered at St. Michael School beyond the traditional classroom helped these young students learn the impact that engaging lab experiments can have on the curiosities of young minds. Programs such as the Science Olympiad (science competition club) and “Science Fun for Everyone,” a hands-on elementary science program, stirred the excitement for science in Isaac, eventually leading him to starting Service Beakers. According to the group, when they learned that NC Education system ranked 32 nationally and 45th for “Best States for Teachers” (according to WalletHub), the idea that they could help make a difference became very real for them. While originally designed to be a “hands on, in person program,” COVID-19 challenged Service Beakers to find ways to reach more students virtually. That didn’t stop their efforts: Last year, they were able to provide 60 monthly lessons to over 3,600 students across 8 different schools.
According to Isaac, the emphasis on character building as well as academic learning that was present during his years at St. Michael School, combined with service projects and volunteer work experiences such as brown-bag ministry and visiting a homeless shelter, formed him to see the value of compassion lived out by serving others in the community.
The goals of Service Beakers are lofty. While they have evolved over time, they all center on their mission: Summed up, Service Beakers is all about making an impact on the children they serve by providing free lessons that help others experience the joy of science through fun activities. Specific goals including wanting to teach as many schools as possible in Wake County and at least one school in all other North Carolina counties. Eventually, they would like to start “chapters” so that they can reach other states.
For Service Beakers to be able to reach as many students as possible, they will need help in a variety of ways. First, they would like to find churches, organizations, and school leaders that would allow them to speak so that they can promote their efforts beyond the Cary, Apex areas. All high school students are invited to consider volunteering for the upcoming year. To further the efforts of the St. Michael “Honduras Sister Parish” ministry, they are also wanting to raise funds to improved internet infrastructure there (WiFi, bandwidth, etc.) as well as collecting donations of used laptops to enhance the learning opportunities for students there. And of course, funds are always needed to purchase the laboratory materials and equipment used for local presentations.
For more information on Service Beakers or to learn how you can help, go to their website at servicebeakers.com