Purdue to begin collection for Gifts-in-Kind drive

Collection boxes will be placed in residence halls and several university buildings through Jan. 11 for donations of family health items such as soap, deodorant, shampoo and baby products, along with underwear, socks, hats, mittens and gloves. A complete list of these items will be posted at each collection site.

The items will be donated to the Food Finders Food Bank Inc., which serves 18 Indiana counties, including Tippecanoe County.

Purdue's annual Martin Luther King Jr. celebration continues Jan. 15 with a speech by Hector Cantu, an award-winning journalist and co-creator/writer of the newspaper comic strip Baldo. Cantu will speak about "Lowriders, Abuelitas and Chica Power! Fighting for a Voice on the Funny Pages." His talk, which is free and open to the public, will begin at 7 p.m. in Stewart Center's Fowler Hall.

Also on Jan. 15 will be a Day of Service followed by an appreciation luncheon. Volunteers can register to help area non-profit organizations by calling (765) 496-2450 by Jan. 11.

On Jan. 17 a video and discussion, "At Our Borders and in the Heartland: Are Promises being kept to Latinos in America?" will take place from 6:30-8 p.m. in Stewart Center, Room 313.

The Gifts-in-Kind Drive and other Martin Luther King Jr. events are sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Human Relations in collaboration with the Diversity Resource Office, Black Cultural Center, African American Studies and Research Center, Office of the Vice President for Housing and Food Services, Latino Cultural Center and the Boiler Volunteer Network.

For more details, call (765) 494-7307 or visit online.

Writer: Maggie Morris, (765) 494-24327, maggiemorris@purdue.edu

Source: Alysa Christmas Rollock, Vice President for Human Relations, (765) 494-5830, acrollock@purdue.edu

Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; purduenews@purdue.edu

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