As soon as the after-Halloween cleanup is finished, members of the Holiday Service Project Committee want UCCS students, staff and faculty to help make brighter holidays for deserving families.
From Nov. 10 to Dec. 7, familiar campus spaces will feature places and opportunities to give. The places include holiday drop boxes, cash donation boxes and giving trees across campus. Opportunities range from adopting a family to volunteering to assembling gifts and food boxes.
The committee members are aware the state of the economy is affecting everyone, but still hope to provide gifts and a holiday meal for about 25 families that might otherwise do without. Committee co-chairs Sheryl Botts, program assistant, College of Letters Arts and Sciences, and Sherry McDonnell, accountant, College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, are confident that faculty, staff and students will step up and help, as in past years. They want to urge campus community members to watch for upcoming sales in stores and buy a few extra food items on shopping trips during the next few weeks. That way, they said, people can give without putting too much strain on the family budget.
For more than 20 years, the drop boxes have been a project mainstay. The decorated boxes are a place to drop off unexpired canned food, non-perishable dry foods, and items purchased from the tags on the giving trees. The drop boxes will be located in Main Hall, University Hall, Osborne Center, Dwire Hall, Columbine Hall, Centennial Hall, the Engineering Building, Family Development Center, Kraemer Family Library, Cragmor Hall, Campus Services Building, Department of Public Safety, Bookstore and University Center.
Departments, clubs, and individuals can adopt a family. Nominations for deserving families will be accepted until Oct. 28. Although confidentiality is maintained, the adopters learn age, gender, and number of members in the family to assist them in purchasing appropriate gifts. Families provide clothing sizes and wish lists. To adopt, please contact Botts by Nov. 15 at [email protected] or x4074.
The giving trees will be in the University Center, Bookstore, Main Hall, Dwire Hall, Columbine Hall and University Hall. The trees are decorated with paper tags that identify gifts that can be purchased for the adopted families. Individuals may take a tag, purchase the gift indicated, and leave the wrapped gift with the tag attached in a drop box or with a project committee member.
Cash donation containers will be located in the following areas beginning Nov. 10: the LAS Dean’s Office in Columbine Hall, University Hall, UCCS Bookstore, University Center information desk, Dwire Hall coffee counter, ENT, Clyde’s, Department of Public Safety, Jazzman’s, the Bursar’s Office and Kraemer Family Library. Donations will be used to purchase grocery store gift cards. Checks can be made payable to “UCCS Holiday Service Project.”
Questions? Botts may be reached at 255-4074 or [email protected]. McDonnell can be reached at 255-4320 or [email protected].
Other committee members are: Beverly Kiselich, program assistant, Department of Visual and Performing Arts, Carla Myers, assistant professor, Kraemer Family Library, Gudrun McCollum, library technician, Kraemer Family Library, Heidi Schwab, general professional, Office of Student Financial Aid, Ian Smith, program assistant, Physics Department, Kerry Peterson, assistant professor, Beth-El College of Nursing and Health Sciences, Kristina Woods, administrative assistant, University Center, Kurt Johnson, director, National Institute of Science, Space and Security Centers, Mary Lile, accountant, Resource Management Division, Mary McGill, program assistant, Geography and Environmental Studies Department and Political Science Department, Nancy Gadachy, program assistant, Student Health Center, Rosemary Kelbel, program assistant, Sociology Department, Tish Fleener, program assistant, Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, and Valerie McClinton, academic advisor, Department of Student Success.
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