Mt. SAC feeds families for thanksgiving

December 01, 2020 - 12:15 AM

With the campus closed due to COVID, Student services had to scrap the idea of holding their annual thanksgiving feast for students. Instead, the Thanksgiving event had to be held as a drive thru,like so many other campus events have turned into. 

Instead of providing a thanksgiving meal for each student, the college wanted to make more of an impact on struggling students and their families. So they reached out to staff and faculty to identify students whose families were having a hard time making ends meet. these students were invited to pick up a thanksgiving meal for four people to feed their entire family on the holiday. 

Students got a choice  of turkey, ham or a vegetarian meal. 

 

It was smelling good and staff were having trouble not digging in themselves and having an early thanksgiving meal!

 Sodexo, the campus' food provider, cooked the meals and boxed them up with directions to heat them. Sodexo has been a partner with Mt. SAC in many initiatives to help combat food insecurity among students, including the food pantries and the Mountie Meals drive thru over the summer.

Students were also given a bag of canned food, which was provided by Puente Hills Toyota. 

Dean of Student Services, Koji Uesugi (far R) and Rigo Estrada (2nd from R), Coordinator of the Basic Needs program, picked up the canned foods that were raised in Toyota Puente Hills'  food drive. Collected were three 55 gallon barrels of food for Mt. SAC students. The college thanks the dealership and its customers for their generosity during this time of great need for students. 

Staff and students got the goodies ready.And placed them in the trunks of student cars. Student Ilene and Betzabel from the Equity Center were happy to Volunteer for such a good cause.

 Job well done. Staff has this drive thru safety procedure mastered by now and it is the primary way the college gets items to students:  from science kits to diplomas.

Students report they feel safe and happy doing it this way during the pandemic.

 Students came by public transport to ensure their families had a thanksgiving meal. 

 This student carried all she could hold to feed her family and we are sure her family celebrates her persistence in staying in college during such challenging times. 

And to help celebrate, Mt. SAC also provided a bottle of sparkling cider (non-alcoholic) to each family to toast their gratitude on this unique thanksgiving.

 Until next year... Student Services said as long the campus is open and it is safe to do so, they look forward to holding the normal thanksgiving feast next year for students. Here is what the feast normally looks like. 

Happy Holidays everyone!