Spaces we belong: ASU Changemaker takes action for MLK Day of Service 2025

Service is at the heart of Arizona State University, an institution that prides itself on giving back and making lasting contributions to Arizona communities and beyond. For college students, finding the time to get involved in service efforts might seem overwhelming. Organizations like ASU Changemaker are looking to fix that. 

Changemaker is a student-led, university-wide initiative  dedicated to mobilizing ASU students in support of local, national, and global initiatives that drive meaningful change. Ariyal Jain, a Tempe campus Lead at Changemaker, highlighted the group’s core principles. 

“Changemaker is dedicated to service,” Jain said. “We have five different pillars: service, sustainability, entrepreneurship, innovation and civic engagement. We really try to make sure we are helping communities that need it, so we have a lot of nonprofit partners.” 

To help meet students where they are and encourage community involvement, Changemaker hosts a variety of service events every semester. These volunteer opportunities not only help students build connections on campus but also demonstrate the rewarding and impactful nature of service.

On Jan. 25, 2025, 45 ASU students gathered at Hoopes Park in Mesa for Changemaker’s annual MLK Day of Service. Inspired by Dr. King’s legacy, this event empowers students to create meaningful change in their communities through a day of dedicated service. 

This year, Changemaker partnered with the Arizona Burn Foundation to participate in a Smoke Alarm Walk. Students, in groups of three, went out into the community, knocking on doors and offering free fire alarm installation for those in need. 

Ved Thareja, the current service chair for Changemaker, discussed their thought process when planning this year’s event. 

“For this specific event, we developed a mission statement,” Thareja said. “We focused on ‘spaces we belong.’ To our team, that essentially meant planning an event everyone was open to join that would have an extensive positive impact.” 

Thareja emphasized the event’s commitment to Dr. King’s dream, noting that volunteers visited the homes of those in need to assess fire safety. The goal, he explained, was to help residents feel secure and valued within their communities.

Changemaker encourages individuals to participate, as well as other campus groups. For this year’s MLK Day of Service, many volunteers came from the Sigma Lambda Gamma National Sorority, Inc. 

Vae Campos-Huerta, one of the Sigma Lambda Gamma volunteers, talked about their team’s decision to join the MLK Day of Service. 

“Each month, we commit our free time to community service,” Campos-Huerta said. “We wanted to do an event that would extend our help outside of ASU’s campus. It’s really important to give back to the communities you come from, which is why we’re here.” 

At the Hoopes Park training location, Arizona Burn Foundation team members and local firefighters walked ASU students through installing fire alarms before sending them on the Smoke Alarm Walk. 

Courtney Estrada, a programs associate for the Arizona Burn Foundation, discussed the importance of preparation in avoiding house fires. 

“We identified this area because there's a lot of fire calls in this side of town,” Estrada said. “Nowadays, it takes about three minutes from when the fire starts to complete a flashover. We want to get out and talk to as many people as we can about if they have working smoke detectors.” 

ASU volunteers were divided into groups of three, each with a different role within the houses. Installers actively installed the free smoke detectors from the Arizona Burn Foundation. Recorders logged the addresses and smoke detector status of the houses they helped. Educators walked through important information with the residents, including fire safety plans and emergency contact cards.  

Students were also encouraged to emphasize the free nature of the service during the walk. By making sure residents were aware of this, they helped ensure the equipment was available to all residents despite any financial barriers they might otherwise experience.  

Evan Shores, a junior studying sustainability, explained her motivation for coming out and volunteering with Changemaker. 

“I liked the idea of being able to meet people who are like-minded and want to help make a difference,” Shores said. “Guaranteeing that everybody has equal access to safety equipment, especially in high-risk areas, fits into Martin Luther King Jr’s dream.” 

Photography by Autumn Williams, Xavier Lipani and Dylan Wickman, ASU Student Life