Enactus hosted a fun event last Wednesday on Sept. 4 from 4 p.m. to 5 p.m. in the Student Union. At this event, students were able to learn more about Valdosta State Universities’ group, Enactus and Nellie’s Diner while enjoying free slices of cake from the local restaurant.  

So, a little history, Enactus is a nonprofit international organization wanting to inspire students anywhere to act, using the power of entrepreneurship to make the world a better place. Enactus has a history dating back to the 90s, that’s more than 20 years of enabling students to make a difference right here on Valdosta State University campus. 

 The work of Enactus aims to mutually transform the lives of the people in the community around them and their own members, encouraging them to develop into driven, effective, leaders. 

The Enactus structural pyramid consists of introductory positions, which is the standard member, who have the opportunity to suggest Enactus events and be the dream team responsible for being there to help make it happen.  

The second highest is the leadership positions, where members have more responsibilities and the freedom to lead group-based assignments.  

Freshman Diya Modi is hoping to be accepted to a leadership position.  

 “When I first joined, the first thing I did was volunteer at the Lamp and it really drew me in because everyone was so nice. Everyone was really nice and helpful; we also work together and we help people. We talked to them and then we also helped on the greenhouse garden. It’s just like a very nice and sweet community and we can help out others,” said Modi. 

The highest student lead position at Enactus is the president, the current president is senior marketing and finance major, Jeffrey Pham, he is a friendly, coordinated, and professional leader who also enjoys the food at Nellies Restaurant. 

It as love at first slice according to Pham. 

“My girlfriend’s mom arranged dinner. We decided to eat at a new restaurant that had just opened up, so she heard that Nelly’s diner had opened up like that week, so we went there [on] opening week, the food was amazing. She gave us a slice of cake. We loved it,” said Pham. 

Nellie’s Diner is a new restaurant located at 2175 North Ashley Street, they opened their doors on Oct.3, 2023 and always have new items on their menu. 

To Jeffrey Shipley, technology team leader in the Langdale College of Business and faculty advisor to Enactus,  Nellies was mutually beneficial. 

“This gave us an opportunity to do outreach to students. For us as an organization, to get our name on campus and get people to understand who we are. Because being up on North campus a lot of times people don’t know who we are, say I never heard of Enactus and like I said we’ve been around 30 years. The other thing was it gave Nellie’s Diner exposure to an opportunity to interact with students and come visit with us,” said Shipley. 

Shipley also explains how Enactus serves the community beyond just promoting Nellie’s Diner. 

“I guess something that we do is a soup kitchen. We’re trying to go every other Friday, so anyone is welcome to join! Students can learn about our greenhouse it’s at Lamp, the homeless shelter and then they could see our impact within the community there as well. You don’t have to be part of an Enactus to come to help. Fridays they start serving at 11:30 so you need to be there a little before 10: 45a.m. to get set up,” said Shipley.  

“It’s also a way for students to think outside of themselves and think about how they can make a difference in the world and you don’t have to be grown to make a difference. You can make a difference as a student at your age or at your space, wherever you are so it’ll make a difference to you.”  

Enactus holds meetings every other Wednesday from 3:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. They are currently considering changing the current meeting location. However, their current one is on North Campus the HSBA Building room 1101. 

Written by Trey Townsend, Staff writer. Photo courtesy of Jeffrey Pham.