A small group can make a large impact! Recently, the Ross Medical Education Center Portage, Michigan campus took a group of 10 volunteers made up of both staff members and students to donate an hour of their time at Generous Hands, Incorporated. Generous Hands, Inc. is a community organization that was created in 2004 by 10 women who saw a need to serve young children in Vicksburg Schools by providing food to take home on the weekends.
These women knew that something needed to be done, so they got to work. In the beginning, the organization simply made packages of food they called Friday Packs for about 20 children. Today, the organization has grown to providing food for over 330 children in the community. Not only do they continue to carry on the simple idea of giving food to children for the weekend, they now also provide these children and families with weekly coupons for milk, bread and eggs at their local Family Fare store. This is in addition to coupons for other items like meat, cheese, fruits, and vegetables at the area’s local Farmer’s Market.
“We only needed 10 volunteers and we filled those spots fast. It’s great to see our Portage Ross Family so involved in our community,” said Amanda Sutherland, Campus Director. “This winter, we will definitely be back to Generous Hands, Incorporated and will continue our support to this wonderful organization.”
The Ross team was able to donate their time by filling 134 “Friday Packs” for upcoming week’s distribution. They packed items such as ravioli, fruit cups, juice boxes, pretzel packs, and more. It was a great opportunity to bond as a Ross team, but more importantly, because they know they will help put smiles on 134 children’s faces and food in their stomachs! “It was a great feeling knowing that these kids would not be hungry this weekend because I spent an hour of my time filling packs,” Stated Tanisha Gonzalez, Career Services Student Support Representative.