Last year the University Student Union partnered with Goodwill for a donation drive which raised enough items for Goodwill to open a new store.
“Last year they were able to donate almost 500,000 items,” Tamar Karkazian, assistant director of USU production, said. “Because we were able to collect so much, Goodwill was able to open up a new store so they are using Fresno State as a basis for their donation campaign.”
This year the USU and the Craig School of Business are partnering up with Goodwill for a second time to collect clothing, as well as electronic and household item donations from Oct. 24 through Oct. 30.
Estevan Gutierrez, a USU board of directors member, said this is a national campaign Goodwill is starting and Fresno State is the first college to participate.
“They want to use what happens here as a basis for what they do, marketing wise nationwide,” Karkazian said.
The nearly 500,000 items collected was a number achieved by the San Joaquin valley as a whole, but Fresno State was a key contributor.
According to Goodwill industries, the roughly 429,000 items donated by the San Joaquin Valley directly contributed to providing job services, such as clothing for interviews, to nearly 5,000 people in the community. Karkazian said the best way for students to get involved is to donate.
Tables and donation centers will be set up in the Free Speech Area from 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. with another donation center set up in the parking lot across from the Student Recreation Center. Early donators will receive free T-shirts for their efforts from Goodwill, but you must be one of the first few.
“If students are interested in volunteering they can just come to one of the tables,” Karkazian said. “We are just trying to collect as many clothes as we can, so that’s the main goal.”
This year there are more organizations involved with the effort, more than last year’s event.
“I think now that there are more people working on this campaign than last year,” Gutierrez said. “Hopefully we don’t match it, but get more than we did last year.”
Students from the marketing department at the Craig School of Business will be volunteering along with USU board members and USU productions members. Break the Barriers is also going to be involved with the effort to get donations from as many students as possible.