GSBS Cares continues yearly tradition of feeding the community
Fifth annual Thanksgiving food drive underway

By Ellie Castano UMass Medical School Communications

November 3, 2011

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Eric Swanson delivering food to the Worcester County Food Bank during last year’s GSBS Cares Food Drive.

Collection box locations UMass Medical School building's main lobby, Student Affairs entrance and clinical lot entrance Lazare Research Building lobby Biotech I, II, IV and V main lobbies Ambulatory Care Center main entrance South Street Campus Recommended food items Soup, stew and chili Dry and canned pasta Macaroni and cheese Cereal, rice and beans Canned fruits and vegetables Canned tuna, chicken and salmon Peanut butter and jelly (no glass, please)

When GSBS Cares Food Drive coordinator Eric Swanson delivered the food collected in first few days of the fifth annual drive, he learned that the Worcester County Food Bank is an even more vital community resource this year than it was last year. “Times are tough. When I delivered the first 190 pounds of food today, the Food Bank representative told me that they are particularly slammed this year,” said Swanson, who is PhD student in cell biology. This is his fourth year of participation in the food drive and his second year serving as coordinator.

According to Feeding America, a U.S. nonprofit network dedicated to ending hunger in this country, and the USDA, one in six Americans struggles with hunger, including 16 million children. The organizers of the GSBS Cares Food Drive hope to lessen hunger locally by collecting more than two tons of food this year, which will be donated to the Worcester County Food Bank during November, Hunger Action Month nationwide. The GSBS Cares Food Drive is taking place now through Nov. 28, with collection bins located throughout the Worcester and South Street campuses.

Monetary donations are also welcome. Checks should be made out to the Worcester County Food Bank and can be given to a GSBS Cares representative.

For additional information, contact Swanson (eric.swanson@umassmed.edu) or fellow GSBS Cares representatives Carina Clingman (carina.clingman@umassmed.edu) or Derrick Deconti (derrick.deconti@umassmed.edu).

GSBS Cares is the GSBS community service committee that serves the larger community through service projects including participating in and sponsoring fundraising and science education events.

Related links on UMassMedNow:

Go behind the scenes of the Thanksgiving food drive (2010)

Annual GSBS Cares Thanksgiving food drive gets off to a frightfully good start (2010)