(Foreground) LaMonica Singleton (left) and Joyce Jenkins (right) lead volunteers in preparation of 25 Thanksgiving baskets.
In these tough economic times many families have no resources for the extras the holidays require such as Thanksgiving meals. As a result, the Winston-Salem State University Staff Senate launched a community service outreach project for the Thanksgiving holiday season. The WSSU Staff Senate and university community chose to sponsor and provide Thanksgiving meals to twenty-five employees whose families are in need.
Luke Williams, store manager of Wal-Mart, Inc. in Winston-Salem, NC, provided valuable assistance to the project by providing the Staff Senate with a donation of twenty-five frozen turkeys to give the university’s neediest families a holiday meal. The campus-wide project involved staff and faculty who donated additional items in order to provide the families with a complete meal. Donations were accepted during the week of November 10 – 17.
“Our goal was to distribute the holiday meals to those families where the need had been identified,” said LaMonica Singleton, WSSU interim director of Career Services and president of the Staff Senate. “Employees were encouraged to nominate their fellow WSSU employees who they felt deserved the gift. They were also given an opportunity to nominate themselves.”
The WSSU Staff Senate Executive Committee and campus volunteers packaged the meals on Thursday, November 20, in room 304 of the Thompson Student Services Center.
The meals were available for pick-up on November 21. The nomination and selection process was kept confidential.
