SYRACUSE, N.Y. -- Dancing and painting, a fun way to spend a Saturday morning. But Syracuse University's Big Event is more than that. It is an opportunity for the city and students to come together.

"Events like this definitely help bridge that gap and really help bring students into the community and hopefully this is just a way to help them interact a little more and come back," Big Event coordinator Hannah Fessler said.

The group is creating a mural with the Dubar Association, which works with local children and families. The mural will hang on an overpass somewhere in the city.

"When they come back from their college years, or starting their families, hopefully this mural will still be there and they can tell their friends and their children, I was a part of that," said Frances Howard, Director of Youth Services at Dunbar.

Dunbar is just one of 25 nonprofit organizations to which 300 student volunteers lent a helping hand.

At the MOST, students were involved in cleanup and organizations. Many said they plan to come back to visit and to volunteer.

"I'm actually thinking about trying to set something up at a monthly basis because I saw how excited these kids got because just to for a few hours of clean up, just to be able to run around the play pen or walk around the museum, that's a lot of fun," said SU sophomore Michael Smith.

But most importantly, students said volunteering is a social responsibility.

"Since I go to college here, it's my new home. And you volunteer where you live," said SU Freshman Tim Biba.

And they hope their efforts make a difference.