(FAYETTEVILLE,
N.C.) – The holidays are a
time to give thanks and appreciate the blessings in one's life. The
members of the USA South Athletic Conference Student-Athlete
Advisory Committee (SAAC) realized that not everyone is as
fortunate as they are and wanted to do something to help make it a
happier holiday in their communities. And so Cans Across the
Conference was initiated in 2004.
SAAC organized the canned food drive as a community service
competition amongst the ten institutions in the USA South.
Each campus SAAC collected cans and other non-perishable items at
their school to benefit a local charity. It was up to each
institution to decide how they wanted to collect and to which group
the donation would go. The institution with the most items
collected would be crowned the Cans Across the Conference
Champion.
Overall, the USA South institutions collected 29,233 items this
fall. Over the nine-year history of the program, USA South
Conference institutions have donated 259,185 items to various
organizations. With a grand total of 9,220 items, Christopher
Newport University is the Cans Across the Conference Champion
for 2012. The Captains are winners for the fourth time and
will be presented the Cans Across the Conference Trophy at a later
date. Ferrum College collected 5,339 items to finish
second while Greensboro College's 3,874 items rounded out the
top-three.
Below is a list of the local organizations where the USA South
institutions donated their collections:
Averett
University - God's Storehouse, a food bank for the less
fortunate in Danville, Virginia.
Christopher Newport
University - Virginia Peninsula Food Bank in Newport News,
Virginia.
Ferrum
College - split between Heavenly Manna, Lake Christian
Ministries, God’s Provision and the St. James Center in
Ferrum, Franklin County and Smith Mt. Lake areas.
Greensboro College
- Urban Ministry of Greensboro, North Carolina.
LaGrange
College - Harmony House and LaGrange, Georgia
Personal Aid
Mary Baldwin
College - Blue Ridge, Virginia-Area Food Bank.
Maryville College
-The Community Food Connection of Blount County, Tennessee.
Meredith College -
"The Daisy Trade Too" which is an on campus organization that
supports Meredith students and their families in need of food.
Methodist
University - Fayetteville, North Carolina Urban
Ministry.
N.C. Wesleyan
College - United Ministries of Rocky Mount, North
Carolina.
Piedmont College -
Clarkesville, Georgia Soup Kitchen
William Peace
University - The Food Bank of Eastern North
Carolina.
PHOTOS: