Heartfelt donations accepted

By Linda Luk

Students on campus are working together to do whatever they can to help the victims of last week’s tragedies.

The Campus Activities Board has organized a campaign to raise money for the American Red Cross, sending people to collect donations around campus and in DeKalb. Red, white and blue ribbons are given to those who donate.

“We are still looking for different organizations to come aboard,” CAB president Mike Brady said. “The more people, the more we can do.”

Community advisers of the residence halls also are making an effort to raise money. Senior psychology major Leslie Shayne has started a campaign at Neptune Hall to collect donations that also will go to the American Red Cross.

“There have been a lot of blood drives,” Shayne said. “They need money to pay for the extra effort and this is a good way to help out for those who can’t donate blood.”

Shayne hopes that each of the 1,000 residents in Neptune donates three dollars, which would add up to $3,000.

Another Neptune community adviser, Lour Lezondra, a senior biology/chemistry major, has set up a table for students to make cards to send to New York.

“What we want to do as a hall was to unify people and to sent words of encouragement for those who are going through tough times now,” Lezondra said.

Grant North is organizing Operation Teddy Bear to collect teddy bears for the American Red Cross to distribute to children in New York who have lost someone, said Joy Hagel, programming vice president of Grant North hall council and a senior elementary education major.

“We already had teddy bears coming in even before boxes were placed on each floor,” Hagel said.

Operation Teddy Bear was started Sept. 12, and businesses like Wal-Mart, Target and K-Mart already have donated gift cards, Hagel said, who continues to work to get more businesses involved.