Sustain Mizzou and several partner organizations are aiming to make students in fruit and vegetable costumes a common sight at Speakers Circle and Memorial Union this week in an effort to raise money for local food banks.
Junior Laura Ebone said she spent five to 10 hours prepping for Local Food for Local People as a co-chairperson of the Sustain Mizzou fundraising event, which has students dressed as peapods and red peppers collect donations.
“Since it’s already an established fundraiser, it wasn’t hard to get volunteers or organize things,” Ebone said.
Local Food for Local People began Monday and will run from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. this week through Friday.
The food drive is meant to raise money to buy food from local farmers to donate to the Central Missouri Food Bank and Centro Latino for families in need.
Sustain Mizzou President Tina Casagrand said this fundraiser started around 2006.
The organization relies on student volunteers and assistance from other MU organizations in hosting the event. Casagrand said this year’s goal is to sign up at least 40 volunteers.
Sustain Mizzou partnered with organizations such as the Environmental Science Club, Alpha Phi Omega, Greeks Going Green and the Little Sisters of the Gold Rose for the event this year.
“I enjoy seeing multiple organizations come together toward a common goal, thereby expanding the benefit,” Ebone said.
Sustain Mizzou spokeswoman Kelly Gehringer said Sustain Mizzou decided to hold the event at both Memorial Union and Speakers Circle because they are both locations that generate a lot of traffic.
“Local Food for Local People is a multi-faceted project,” Gehringer said. “It aims to supply fresh and nutritious food to those in poverty, support our local farmers and reduce the carbon emissions associated with food transportation. Overall, it offers an educational aspect by engaging the community in all of these issues.”
Ebone said this fundraiser allows lower income families access to fresh produce, rather than just processed food. She said Sustain Mizzou’s objective is to collect as much money as possible, while educating MU students on the issue.
“Obviously, the main goal is to raise funds and awareness of our cause,” Ebone said. “We would really like to see this be a very successful event in terms of fundraising and education.”
Casagrand said in the past they have raised as much as $4,000. Last year they raised approximately $1,500.
“Some strategies work better than others, but I think the reason we’ve raised less is the slower economy and the fact that people carry around less cash,” Casagrand said.
In 2008, Sustain Mizzou was able to donate more than 300 pounds of ground beef, 200 pounds of sweet potatoes and 220 pounds of green peppers, as well as around 400 dozen eggs to their beneficiaries.
“The food drive is an effective fundraiser, because we interact with the Mizzou community in a fun, energetic way, while supporting local farmers and helping those who have hunger problems,” Sustain Mizzou Treasurer Samuel Ott said.
Sustain Mizzou Vice President Henry Hellmuth said he agreed.
“It combines having fun, community and a good cause,” Hellmuth said. “We dress up in food costumes and sing songs, we talk with other students not only informing them about the drive, but also about food issues and Sustain Mizzou and we raise a good sum of money to help people in need and local farmers.”
Hellmuth said he will be dressing up in a costume and added they even purchased a new red pepper costume.
“How can you resist a person dressed like a peapod?” Casagrand said. “Even if I weren’t carrying money, I’d want to stop and talk to them.”