Groups canvas for Hoosier Hills

Students for Barack Obama campaigned during the election season, but now the group is on a mission to collect food for the homeless.

From 1 to 4 p.m. Saturday, members of the organization worked with Volunteers for Change, walking door to door to collect about 1,200 pounds of food and $1,138 in donations for Hoosier Hills Food Bank.

“I did a lot of stuff with the campaign because I was really passionate about Obama,”
said sophomore Laura Carlson, a volunteer who registered voters during the campaign.

In the same way they walked door to door registering voters, the students collected canned goods and monetary donations.

“We wanted to keep the energy from the campaign going,” said Neville Batiwalla, graduate student and member of Students for Barack Obama.

After the election, the organization decided to focus on community service activities and saw that Hoosier Hills Food Bank had an increasing need for donations.

While the number of individual donations has gone up recently, donations from restaurants and grocery stores have gone down. At the same time, the number of families in need has gone up. With this food drive, the organization hopes to increase the amount of individual donations.

Volunteers for Change, which also developed from groups campaigning for Obama, was a part of this food drive in two other locations focused on the Bloomington community, while Students for Barack Obama focused on the student population.

Volunteers for Change also had a food drive on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, inspiring Students for Barack Obama to get involved.

While many members of Students for Barack Obama are involved in both political and community service work, anyone can take part in the community service activities, political affiliations notwithstanding.

After this event, the group will work more with Homeward Bound, an organization focused on creating affordable housing and raising awareness about homelessness in Indiana.

“It’s like the housing equivalent to Hoosier Hills,” said Kaitlin Addison, co-chairperson for Students for Barack Obama.

And while they plan to continue sponsoring service projects in the future, members still hope to have a positive impact on the community.

“The average person going out can collect $80 worth of food per hour,” Addison said.