Registered Student Organizations at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln are invited to participate in the first ever Lincoln CAN event now through October 1.
The Food Bank of Lincoln, in celebration of its 35th anniversary, is raising $35,000 and 35,000 pounds of canned food in September throughout Lincoln. UNL students can be part of this by collecting cans and delivering them to East Campus on Oct. 1, where cans will be lined up around the East Campus Mall between 2 and 4 p.m. Lincoln CAN is modeled after a successful student program at Colorado State University in which donated cans of food are laid side-by-side on a campus street.
Karley Powell, director of special projects with UNL’s Public Relations Student Society of America, said the group is working with UNL’s Center for Civic Engagement to attract student organizations to participate in the can drive.
Statistics show that about 247,000 Nebraskans are food insecure, Powell said; these people do not know where their next meal is coming from. This number includes 60,000 in the Lincoln area. And, she notes, about 1/3 of UNL students report they sometimes worry about having enough money for food. Many of these people turn to the Food Bank of Lincoln for help.
Powell said RSOs can register by going to lincolnfoodbank.org/can.php to sign up. By clicking on “university/student organization,” RSOs at UNL will be identified as participants.
“You will be doing good, and the task is pretty easy,” Powell said.
UNL PRSSA and the Center for Civic Engagement have also created a challenge to build a sculpture of cans. The Lincoln CAN Build challenge requires participants to register with the Food Bank at lincolnfoodbank.org/can.php, then collect cans, build a structure using their cans, and post a picture or video of the can structure on Facebook and tag UNL PRSSA and Center for Civic Engagement. Then cans should be delivered to the Lincoln CAN event on Oct 1. Full details can be found at: http://www.unl.edu/prssa/lincoln-can.
Michaella Kumke, Food Bank communications director, said students can be hands-on change agents by coming up with creative ways to collect cans of food and encouraging their friends and others groups to be part of this community effort to address hunger. If the goals are reached, more than 134,000 meals could be provided.
For students who have questions Karley Powell can answer these via email at karpowell96@gmail.com or phone at 402-580-1699.