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Volunteers T.K. Berger, right, and Patty MacFarland, left, sort through items to be shelved during a service project at Family Haven in Orem as part of United Way of Utah County's Day of Caring on Thursday. Sept. 11, 2025.

Curtis Booker, Daily Herald

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Volunteers perform a cleaning service project at Family Haven in Lehi as part of United Way of Utah County's Day of Caring on Thursday. Sept. 11, 2025.

Courtesy United Way of Utah County

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Matt Williams of U.S. Synthetic installs a smoke detector, as part of a volunteer service project at Family Haven in Orem as part of United Way of Utah County's Day of Caring on Thursday. Sept. 11, 2025.

Curtis Booker, Daily Herald

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Volunteers T.K. Berger, right, and Patty MacFarland, left, sort through items to be shelved during a service project at Family Haven in Orem as part of United Way of Utah County's Day of Caring on Thursday. Sept. 11, 2025.

Curtis Booker, Daily Herald

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A volunteer is pictured doing a service project at Family Haven in Lehi as part of United Way of Utah County's Day of Caring on Thursday. Sept. 11, 2025.

Courtesy United Way of Utah County

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On Thursday, hundreds of volunteers donated their time and physical energy to various community service projects throughout the valley, as part of United Way of Utah County’s Day of Caring.

The generous act aligns with the National Day of Service and Remembrance, honoring the thousands of lives lost during the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001.

On Thursday, volunteers from over 50 businesses and organizations throughout the county completed 93 service projects at schools, community centers and playgrounds.

“This is a front-row seat to what makes Utah County strong,” said Jeanette Bennett, United Way Board Chair, in a statement. “When you see a CEO, a student, and a retiree working side by side to repaint a playground or deliver supplies, you see the next generation learning that kindness and connection are the real innovations.”

At Family Haven, a support center that helps struggling families in Orem, volunteers from partnering business U.S. Synthetic took on several tasks from replacing smoke detectors, repairing light fixtures and landscaping efforts.

Janelle Christensen, executive director at Family Haven, said the United Way of Utah County’s annual event signifies the importance of impactful community volunteerism.

“(The) Day of Caring is one example of how they’re able to find people who want to do good, organizations that have a way for them to do that, and partner those together to really create some awesome things — all happening one day across the valley,” Christensen said.

Family Haven will soon open a new location in Lehi. Volunteers from Kyco spent the morning there assembling furniture, painting a mural, among other needs for the center.

While Thursday marks 24 years since the horrific acts of 9/11, the murder of conservative activist Charlie Kirk on Wednesday continues to rattle Utah County and beyond.

In Orem, where Kirk was shot on the campus of Utah Valley University, just blocks away from Family Haven, Christensen said the tragedy hits close to home.

“We had employees on campus that were part of the evacuation procedures,” she said. “We have lots of our staff that either attend (UVU) or have siblings (or) family members that attend there. So yeah, (it’s) definitely something we felt really close to home.”

In the midst of devastation, Christensen said it was comforting to see so many community members unite for the purpose of creating community connection through service.

“To have a day right on the heels of something tragic that happened, as well as an annual tradition; to take kind of a silver lining from a tragedy and say, what can we learn from it?” she said. “What can we do to be stronger than those difficult moments and show those people that they’re not going to diminish the good that we have within us?”