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It has been said that imitation is the best form of flattery.
And if feeding hungry mouths is involved, all the more reason to imitate.
According to a recent article published in The Daily Pennsylvanian, students from the University of Pennsylvania formed an organization to help provide food to the homeless of Philadelphia. The students did this in an innovative and unique way.
The students began donating meals from their meal plans that would have otherwise gone unused, The Daily Pennsylvanian reported. This simple act expanded into a project, More Than Pennies, which collected unused meals from more students.
Last December, More Than Pennies collected and donated meals from more than 1,200 students.
If New Mexico State University students who have meal plans followed suit, think of the positive impact local homeless shelters could have. Not only could potential food waste from Taos Restaurant be eliminated, but students could get more use out of their meal plans.
Building on what the group of students started at the University of Pennsylvania, could NMSU start a similar movement?
Initially, the group of students involved with the University of Pennsylvania project made an agreement with their dining provider, Aramark, which happens to be the same provider that services NMSU. Under this agreement, students could donate one meal from their meal plans and, in turn, Aramark would make a contribution, The Daily Pennsylvanian reported.
Since then, the university partnered with a new dining provider that, according to The Daily Pennsylvanian, has been more responsive with the project, making the donation process a more interactive effort.
Whatever the case may be at NMSU, we still have an opportunity to affect our local disadvantaged community – whether it’s striking an agreement with Aramark or simply taking to-go boxes to designated donation places.
El Caldito Soup Kitchen, at 999 West Amador Ave., serves more than 60,000 meals annually, according to its Web site. Think how much more they may serve with a little help from NMSU students.
The Las Cruces Gospel Rescue Mission, at 1050 West Amador Ave., is another volunteer organization that accepts food donations. According to its Web site, the Gospel Rescue Mission served 68,044 meals in 2008.
It’s a win-win situation – students who purchase meal plans can fully utilize their meal plans and also give back to their community by donating food.
Just as with the University of Pennsylvania, maybe if one or two people started by taking to-go boxes to local homeless facilities, more and more people would join.
To learn more about how to donate, call the Las Cruces Gospel Rescue Mission at 533-7727. For more information on how to donate at the El Caldito Soup Kitchen, call 525-3831.
Dustin Edwards is the opinion editor and can be contacted at truopinion@nmsu.e
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