Next week, SHSU students will be able to contribute to a good cause and have a little fun while they’re doing it. Students on a Quest for Unity and Diversity, or SQUAD, is sponsoring its first annual Hug Drive from March 31- April 4.
The objective of the Hug Drive is to collect canned food and monetary donations for the Good Shepherd Mission. Students can help by picking up a pledge form in LSC 328 or by downloading one from the Office of MISS website. After that, they can collect pledges of money or canned goods.
Each dollar a student gets is worth one hug. Some items are worth more than one hug; donation information, along with hug values, is available online at http://www.shsu.edu/~miss_sa/v2/HugDrive2008_Donations.html.
There are several ways that students can get pledges. They can ask friends and family members, local business or other students. Student organizations can also take part in the Hug Drive.
“Just ask family members, maybe places that you work,” said Ashley McDonough, the program coordinator for the Office of Miss. “Because the donations all go to Good Shepherd Mission, it’s all tax deductible. It’s for a really good cause.”
Pledge forms are due in LSC 328 by 5 p.m. on Friday, March 27. SQUAD will calculate the amount of pledged money or goods, and then on Monday, participating students will go out and earn their pledges.
“It’s like you were running a marathon; you have to run so many laps or so many miles,” McDonough said. “We’re doing that here, but with hugs.”
According to the Hug Drive official rules, students must wear a Hug Drive t-shirt to participate. Participants can hug anyone anywhere, and hug recipients must sign a hug recipient form as evidence of their participation. Hug recipients will also receive an “I’ve been hugged” sticker. Any student has the right to refuse to be hugged. Students are also welcome to make donations to the Good Shepherd Mission without pledging to hug others.
“Any donations are always welcome,” McDonough said. “The more we can donate to Good Shepherd Mission the better.”
More information about the Hug Drive, including a downloadable pledge form, is available online at http://www.shsu.edu/~miss_sa/v2/HugDrive2008_Home.html. Students can also stop by the Student Activities office, LSC 328, to pick up a form or get more information.