(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, thus Cans Across the Conference was initiated in 2004.

SAAC organized the canned food drive as a community service competition amongst the 13 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 20,497 items this fall. Over the ten-year history of the program, USA South Conference institutions have donated 278,652 items to various organizations. With a grand total of 6,095 items, Ferrum College is the Cans Across the Conference Champion for 2013. The Panthers are winners for the first time and will be presented the Cans Across the Conference Trophy at a later date. Methodist University collected 2,368 items to finish second while Greensboro College's 2,267 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.
Covenant College - Bethel Bible Village's mission which provides safe, nurturing and Christ-centered homes for children of families in crisis.
Ferrum College - Split between five local Franklin County, Virginia food banks: Heavenly Manna, Lake Christian Ministries, God’s Provision, St. James Center and Henry Baptist Church.
Greensboro College - Urban Ministry of Greensboro, North Carolina.
Huntingdon College - Montgomery, Alabama Area Food Bank.
LaGrange College - The Good Sam Ministries to support kids in Troup County, Georgia schools.
Mary Baldwin College - Blue Ridge, Virginia-Area Food Bank.
Maryville College -The Community Food Connection of Blount County, Tennessee.
Meredith College - Split between "The Daisy Trade Too" which is an on campus organization that supports Meredith students and their families in need of food and InterAct of Wake County Residential Shelter, a local shelter that provides housing and education for women and their families who are victims of domestic and sexual abuse.
Methodist University - Split between the Fayetteville, North Carolina Urban Ministry and local Veterans shelter.
N.C. Wesleyan College - United Ministries of Rocky Mount, North Carolina.
Piedmont College - The Clarkesville, Georgia Soup Kitchen.
William Peace University - The Raleigh, North Carolina Vineyard.

PHOTOS:

Covenant College

Methodist University