WAYNE, Neb. -- Jessie Baxter just wanted to be involved, maybe find an activity in which she could make a difference at Wayne State College.

So when she was approached last fall to help out with Wildcat Wheels, she was open to it. Once she learned more about it, Baxter realized that not only did the program allow her to be involved, it gave her a chance to have a deeper impact at the college.

"It makes me feel good to be part of a program where I don't know how many lives I've possibly saved," the Sioux City Bishop Heelan graduate said.

Formally known as Wildcat Wheels Safe Ride Program, the service provides free cab rides within the Wayne city limits to Wayne State students from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m. every Thursday night, plus Halloween and St. Patrick's Day.

Why Thursday?

"Thursday night is a big party night in Wayne," Baxter said.

Not everyone who calls the service has been drinking, said Baxter, a junior who's the program's lead dispatcher. Students call for rides for a variety of reasons. It's commonly used for late-night food runs to McDonald's or Wayne East, a gas station/convenience store popular with the student crowd for its Mucho Nachos. During the winter, it's a lot easier to have a warm cab pick you up at your front door rather than go out to the parking lot and warm up your car.

But it's also obvious that some of the 40-50 students who call for a ride each week have been drinking, Baxter said. Wildcat Wheels keeps many kids from getting behind the wheel when they're in no condition to drive.

"We're by no way promoting underage drinking. We're promoting a safe ride," Baxter said. "Call us. Let us worry about your problems."

We adults who haven't been in college for a number of years tend to change our attitudes about irresponsible behavior and now frown on the actions some co-eds may take on the weekends.

But Wayne State students are showing that they have a responsible side even if they've had too much to drink.

When Wildcat Wheels started in 2005, only one cab was needed, said Kathy Mohlfeld, a Wayne State counselor, academic adviser and Wildcat Wheels coordinator. Now, three Checker Cabs from Norfolk come up to Wayne every Thursday. Earlier this year, Wildcat Wheels had its 20,000th rider since the program started. For minimal pay, eight students periodically give up their Thursday nights to be dispatchers.

Maybe the biggest indicator that students respect the program is that they've twice voted in favor of a student fee increase to pay for the program.

"They expect it now. It's something they depend on," Baxter said. "I'm glad that it's popular and it's not fading out."

It's made a difference, she said, allowing her and the other student dispatchers a chance to make Wayne's streets a little safer on Thursdays.