The university will host its Tommies Together St. Thomas Day of Service on Tuesday and Wednesday, April 26 and 27. For a second year in a row, the community will come together for a Feed My Starving Children MobilePack with a goal of packing more than 100,000 meals for starving children around the world.
Volunteers may choose from three shifts: Tuesday, April 26, from 11:30 a.m.-1:30 p.m. or from 5:30-7:30 p.m., or Wednesday, April 27, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. All shifts will be held at Campus Way on the second floor of the Anderson Student Center. UPDATE: The only shift with space remaining for volunteers is Wednesday, April 27, from 11 a.m.-1 p.m. Those registering for other shifts will be added to a wait list.
In 2015, the university's first MobilePack attracted 415 volunteers, including students, faculty, staff, alumni and neighbors. Over the course of three two-hour volunteer shifts, 109,080 meals were packed for malnourished children in the developing world. That amount of food is enough to feed 298 children for an entire year.
The Tommies Together MobilePack event was initiated by Father Larry Snyder, vice president for mission, in conjunction with the annual St. Thomas Day celebration. According to Snyder, the strategic plan of the university challenges us to create a culture of service at St. Thomas.
"There are already many incredible initiatives occurring at St. Thomas, but to have a highly visible, inclusive volunteer project that truly impacts families living in poverty as part of the St. Thomas Day celebration is an important sign that we are going to make good on that commitment," Snyder said. "Last year’s event was very successful and involved many students in packing over 100,000 meals. This year will match that and show Tommies working together ‘all for the common good.’”
Learn more and register for the MobilePack event at stthomas.edu/tommiestogether.
A Christian nonprofit founded in 1987, Feed My Starving Children tackles world hunger by sending volunteer-packed, nutritious meals to 70 countries, where they are used to operate orphanages, schools, clinics and feeding programs to break the cycle of poverty. Last year, FMSC welcomed nearly 900,000 volunteers to pack more than 229 million meals. The Minnesota-based charity spends 92 percent of total donations directly on feeding the hungry and earned the highest four-star rating from Charity Navigator for 10 consecutive years.
MobilePack events enable people across the United States to pack FMSC’s life-giving MannaPack meals. Churches, businesses, community groups and schools in more than 35 states have hosted these food-packing events as a way to foster teamwork and unity, while making a real difference in the fight to prevent and reverse malnutrition. FMSC provides guidance and logistics. Local donors and volunteers provide funds and labor to pack the meals.
