The Future Leaders and Entrepreneur Exchange group will hold a food drive beginning April 15 in cooperation with Community Services of Venango County and Clarion University’s Venango Campus.
The food drive will kick off with a brown-bag luncheon and meeting beginning at 11:45 a.m. Thursday, April 15, at the Venango Campus Robert W. Rhoades Center in Oil City. During the brown-bag event, FLEX members will discuss issues of poverty in the Venango County region with community members.
All community members are welcome with a donation of any non-perishable item.
Donations of non-perishable items (non-canned items included) will be accepted every Tuesday and Wednesday at drop-off bins located in Rhoades Center and Montgomery Hall at Venango Campus.
Proceeds will go to Community Services of Venango County, which provides a number of social and educational services for families, children and individuals throughout the county that are in need of assistance.
“FLEX is not only about developing ourselves professionally, but we’re also about civic engagement,” said FLEX president Trenton Moulin. “It’s come to light, to us, that there is a call for food donations and food banks because the local need has gone up, but the donations have gone down.”
Moulin also said the project coincides well with FLEX’s mission statement, including the “continued development of the Venango area through civic engagement, leadership development and networking.”
The group is also working with Emily Aubele, Venango Campus director of student affairs; the Venango Campus student senate; and Ashley Stroup-McCauley of the Venango Area Chamber of Commerce (with whom FLEX is a member) in gaining “logistic support, and in helping spread the word about the drive, Moulin said.
“We’re just looking to increase the awareness of issues of poverty in Venango County,” said FLEX member Renee Spence. “That’s why we picked a local agency to support with our donations.”
The event marks the first time FLEX has held a food drive.
“We’re looking to grow this project even more for next year,” Moulin said. “We hope it will become an annual event.”
The drive will continue through May 9.
This is such a commendable event. Congratulations FLEX for recognizing and addressing a critical need in Venango County. For recognizing community betterment is something bigger than all of us put together.