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Southern Arkansas University will honor the lives lost on September 11, 2001, by turning remembrance into action and bringing the University and surrounding community together to help address food insecurity.<\/p>\nSouthern Arkansas University will honor the lives lost on September 11, 2001, by turning remembrance into action and bringing the University and surrounding community together to help address food insecurity.<\/p>\n
Through a federal 9\/11 grant written by Kathy Gean, director of SAU+AmeriCorps VISTA and Service Learning, SAU was awarded $10,000 to support a service project honoring those whose lives were lost on 9\/11. The grant will fund a large-scale meal-packing event on Tuesday, September 22, 2026, at the SAU Student Event Center.<\/p>\n
SAU has partnered with The Pack Shack to bring its meal-packing program to campus. Volunteers will work together to pack approximately 25,000 Louisiana-style red beans and rice meals in just a few hours.<\/p>\n
The event will bring together SAU students, faculty and staff, community volunteers, university and community leaders, and local dignitaries, including Dr. Bruno Hicks, SAU president; Dr. Jerry Thomas, SAU Tech chancellor; Steve Crowell, Arkansas state senator; and others.<\/p>\n
Volunteer shifts will be held from 1\u20132 p.m. and 2\u20133 p.m. Members of the SAU and Magnolia communities are invited to participate in this special service project.<\/p>\n
The impact of the event will extend well beyond September 22. Following the meal-packing event, the meals will be distributed throughout the community. A portion will be made available through Mulerider Market, SAU’s campus food pantry, and the SAU Tech food pantry. Meals will also be shared with Stew Pot, Body and Soul Ministry at Asbury Methodist Church, and local school food pantries, helping provide food to students, families and individuals who may be experiencing food insecurity.<\/p>\n
\u201cSeptember 11 is a day we will never forget, but remembrance can also be a call to serve,\u201d said Kathy Gean, Director of SAU+AmeriCorps VISTA and Service Learning. \u201cThis project gives us an opportunity to honor the lives lost by coming together to do something that will directly help others. We are taking a day remembered for tragedy and using it to create an opportunity for service, compassion and hope. These 25,000 meals will continue to make a difference long after the event is over, reaching students and families throughout our community.\u201d<\/p>\n
The meal-packing project reflects SAU’s commitment to service learning, community engagement and addressing food insecurity. It also provides students and community members with a meaningful way to participate in a service project rooted in the values of compassion, unity and helping others.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe hope people will come not only to remember, but to serve,\u201d Gean said. \u201cEvery meal packed represents a small act of kindness, and together, those small acts can make a tremendous difference.\u201d<\/p>\n
Community meal recipients: Mulerider Market, SAU Tech food pantry, Stew Pot, Body and Soul Ministry at Asbury Methodist Church, and local school food pantries.<\/p>\n
About SAU+AmeriCorps VISTA:\u00a0 <\/strong><\/p>\n Funded by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), SAU+AmeriCorps VISTA focuses on poverty alleviation through college degree completion. Learn more at https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/vista\/<\/a><\/p>\n About SAU:<\/p>\n Southern Arkansas University provides students with the complete college experience in a caring environment of service, innovation, and community. With more than 100 degrees across four distinct colleges and the School of Graduate Studies, SAU initiates new degree programs to meet the needs of today\u2019s career and professional trends. To learn more about SAU, visit www.saumag.edu.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Southern Arkansas University will honor the lives lost on September 11, 2001, by turning remembrance into action and bringing the University and surrounding community together to help address food insecurity. Through a federal 9\/11 grant written by Kathy Gean, director of SAU+AmeriCorps VISTA and Service Learning, SAU was awarded $10,000 to support a service project… Read More<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10,"featured_media":12244,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_genesis_hide_title":false,"_genesis_hide_breadcrumbs":false,"_genesis_hide_singular_image":false,"_genesis_hide_footer_widgets":false,"_genesis_custom_body_class":"","_genesis_custom_post_class":"","_genesis_layout":"","footnotes":"","_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"categories":[272,276,7753,143],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12239","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-archives","category-community-corner","category-homepage","category-student-life","entry"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12239","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/10"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12239"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12239\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12242,"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12239\/revisions\/12242"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12244"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12239"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12239"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.saumag.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12239"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}