Volunteers sought for Feed the Need meal-packing event Feb. 15-16

Community members and North Central College students, faculty and staff volunteers are needed to pack meals in two-hour shifts Feb. 15-16 to help feed children who are starving.

The College is hosting its first Feed My Starving Children MobilePack event in partnership with Feed The Need, a Naperville-based coalition of churches, congregations and civic organizations. The event will be held in the College’s Residence Hall/Recreation Center, 440 S. Brainard St.

“Events like this give our students the chance to learn about global needs, partner with community organizations and make a tangible social impact—all of which is central to the College’s mission of developing citizens and leaders,” says Jeremy Gudauskas, associate dean of students.

An estimated 4,000 campus and community volunteers will pack up to 800,000 meals in less than 42 hours to help starving children in more than 70 countries. More than 300,000 of the meals will be directly delivered to countries impacted by the Ebola outbreak.

“This is a huge endeavor but we believe we have an opportunity to make a significant impact for those in need,” says Whitney Roberts, assistant director of ministry and service. “Every year students, staff, faculty and alumni devote thousands of hours to serve people in our neighborhoods and across the globe. This year, North Central has an extraordinary opportunity to partner with Feed My Starving Children and contribute to their work feeding more than 500,000 children worldwide every day.”

Five two-hour shifts will be held, with four shifts on Sunday, Feb. 15 from 9-11 a.m., noon to 2 p.m., 3-5 p.m. and 7-9 p.m. and one on Monday, Feb. 16 (President’s Day), from 9-11 a.m. Two shifts on Sunday, noon to 2 p.m. and 3-5 p.m. are filled, but openings remain for the others.
 
North Central College students, faculty and staff may sign up on CardinalNet. Campus community members who want to learn more may contact volunteer coordinator Samantha Neahring at smneahring@noctrl.edu.

Community members who want to learn more about how to volunteer may visit www.feedtheneednaperville.org or call Les May at 630-235-5925. To learn more about FMSC visit www.fmsc.org or contact Anthony Kasper at akasper@fmsc.org.

The year’s Feed The Need event replaces the College’s annual Intersection day of service. Since 2007, this event has offered students, faculty, staff and alumni opportunities to collectively participate in community service projects.