Offices and organizations at Indiana University of Pennsylvania have come together to raise funds, food, and gifts for local residents in need this holiday season.
The Office of Service Learning helped the Indiana Gazette, the local newspaper, with its Angels' Wings drive. The drive collects gifts for children and elderly in the community. Students from the office tabled in the HUB and library and distributed gift request tags to volunteers. Approximately 200 gifts were donated. Brianna Faber, a biology major, is pictured with the donated items.
The Graduate Student Assembly held a food drive for the Indiana County Community Action Program (ICCAP) and collected 225 pounds for the food pantry. Members of the GSA—Peter Faziani, president; and Brett Tozer, treasurer—are pictured presenting a portion of their food donations to Aimee Kemp, the ICCAP food program director.
The Office of Human Resources has raised more than $200 for grocery gift cards for Pathways Homeless Shelter. Donations are still being accepted. For every dollar donated, a paper origami crane was folded and hung on the IUP-HR holiday tree. It is said in Japanese culture that anyone who has the patience to fold 1,000 paper cranes will be granted their most desired wish. The wishes of Peace and Hope were the theme for the drive. Holding paper cranes from the drive are IUP Human Resources staff members Lorie Albright, Brittany Weaver, Angie Phillips, Brittany Davis, and Alexis Frenchak, with Marlene Meagher, the director of Pathways Shelter.