10 hours walking dogs. 600 minutes reading with kids. 36,000 seconds writing to a penpal.

Volunteering can be an enjoyable activity, especially when the volunteer gets a free CAKE ticket for every 10 hours of community service.

The 10,000 Hours Show is a community-oriented project started by young Iowans for all Iowans. 10K is a statewide effort to engage young Iowans in their communities through volunteering and celebrates each year of service with a free rock concert just for volunteers.

Jim Hayes, assistant director of Lilly Initiative for vocational discernment, can see the great effects of the program and its concert reward for students as he matches them with a volunteer activity they will enjoy.

“The 10,000 Hours Show gets students out in the community, and if they really enjoy their volunteer work they will continue it when there is no reward,” Hayes said.

Students also have a bright outlook for 10K on Simpson’s campus.

“When I heard about the program I was really excited,” junior and Team Ground Leader Katie Albrecht said. “I had never heard of a program that not only encouraged students to build stronger communities, but also rewarded them for doing so.”

Many students are joining in with 10K’s plan to volunteer and receive a free CAKE ticket. Volunteer activities can be anything to make a difference in the community.

Senior Brandi Mullen has already put in her 10 hours. Among many other community service activities, she has volunteered her time reading to and listening to kids read at Irving Elementary School in Indianola.

However, there are many volunteering options; students don’t need to limit themselves to one.

“As a volunteer of The 10,000 Hours Show, a student can choose how he/she would like to spend their 10 service hours, and any previously done service hours (since last April) can count toward these hours,” Albrecht said.

In only two years, 10K has rewarded 33,581 hours of community service by Iowans and is working to make a bigger impact this year.

The 10K Show has made an impact in Hayes’ eyes. According to Hayes, Simpson volunteers have definitely helped this year.

“If we target issues, we can make a big difference in connecting college students to the community,” Hayes said.

Mullen agrees that students play an important part in keeping the community whole.

“I think it will be great to get as many people on campus involved with the community as possible,” Mullen said. “It is great that we now have a reward for all those people that do community service and also an incentive for others to begin volunteering.”

Albrecht enjoys the sense of community that 10K fosters.

“My favorite part of the program is the fact that only volunteers can go to the CAKE concert on April 8,” Albrecht said. “To be at a concert surrounded by other young people who have all volunteered their time, just like you did, has got to be a really cool experience.”