As the semester comes to an end, an inconvenient reality kicks in: moving day.
But Campus Bellhops, a new UF student-run moving company, will try to help ease the stress of moving.
Ty Parker, a 22-year-old mechanical engineering senior and co-director of the company, said he heard about the success of Campus Bellhops at Auburn University in the fall and wanted to bring the business to UF this spring.
Campus Bellhops will help any student who needs to move in the Gainesville area. The cost of moving without furniture is $100, and moving with furniture is $150.
“The purpose is to help people move in and out,” Parker said. “It will mostly benefit parents who cannot travel to help their kids.”
Alex Mahoney, a 23-year-old UF graduate student and co-director, said the company will benefit UF in two ways.
“It provides jobs for students in need and provides services for students who are not interested in moving,” he said.
Campus Bellhops hires only students. Applicants are required to provide a photo and a paragraph about themselves, Mahoney said. That way, students who sign up for the service can see who will help them move.
Parker said once students sign up for a moving time, it’s up to the student employees to pick what date and time they want to work.
Movers work in pairs, and Campus Bellhops has hired about 78 employees so far.
McKenzie McNabb, a 21-year-old public relations junior, said she likes the idea of students helping other students move. McNabb’s family will be helping her younger brother move when he goes to college in August, and they won’t be able to help her move out during the same time.
“I haven’t heard of anything like this before,” she said. “Typically when you move, you have to hire strangers who you cannot trust. With students, I feel more trusting.”
