During a time of gratitude and giving, Roanoke College is finding ways to make the spirit of the season felt across its community. Through donation drives and local partnerships, students, faculty and staff are working to brighten the holidays for their neighbors. Here are just a few ways they’re making a difference.
Bountiful blessings
Weston Powell ’27 had a clear goal in mind when he set out to organize a one-day food drive blitz that united multiple student groups, campus offices and off-campus partners.
“We’re just trying to build community,” said Powell, a criminal justice major and a student community leader with Residence Life & Housing.
The food drive, held on Reading Day before finals week, was supported by all residence hall leaders, Campus Safety, Roanoke Promise and Pass on Hunger. Powell also secured generous sponsorships from Sheetz, New Hope Ruritan Club and Cave Spring Dental Arts.
Throughout the day, students were encouraged to donate food and meal swipes or help assemble care packages with snacks and hygiene products. Raffle prizes kept the excitement high throughout the six-hour drive.
Students donated a total of about $1,600 in food and meal swipes. That’s on top of items donated by community sponsors. Donations benefited RC Pantry, which is open year-round to help students in need, and Feeding Southwest Virginia, a regional food bank in Salem.
Powell said he was grateful for the outpouring of support from the community and campus alike.
“Our sponsors were really onboard, which we were very fortunate to have,” he said. “As you can see, there’s a lot of stuff here and it’s all going to stay local. This was a fun way for students to get involved and help people in the area who could really use it.”
Notes of good cheer
Dozens of students put pen to paper during Community Day to send notes of gratitude and encouragement to people at two organizations with close connections to Roanoke: Brandon Oaks retirement community and the West End Center for Youth.
“I just wanted to take a moment to say thank you. Your strength, kindness and presence means more than you know,” read one handwritten card. In another card bound for a child at the West End Center, a student wrote, "You are awesome! You are capable of doing anything you believe or dream of. Work hard and never give up."
Roanoke has long partnered with Brandon Oaks and the West End Center to create service-learning opportunities that help students hone their skills and connect their learning to real-world needs and action.
The personal notes were part of a series of community-minded events held when students, faculty and staff gathered to reflect on character education, a topic the campus is doing a deep dive on thanks to support from the Program for Leadership and Character at Wake Forest University.
“We hope the notes were something encouraging and warm for people to receive, especially at the holidays,” said Heather Johnson, senior director of strategic partnerships and an organizer of Community Day. “It was one small way of offering kindness and creating moments of connection with our wider community.”
'Tis better to give
This year, Roanoke faculty, staff and retirees helped buy presents for 143 children through the West End Center for Youth’s annual angel gift drive. For this holiday tradition, supporters adopt an “angel” from the youth center and purchase new clothes for them. Each child receives at least one new outfit.
“This is one of our absolute favorite holiday projects,” said Associate Vice President for Strategic Marketing and Communications Lindsey Nair ’98, who organized the gift drive. “There’s something special about picking out items for an angel and knowing you’re helping make the season a little brighter for another family. It’s such a meaningful partnership, and it always fills us with joy.”
The college community has partnered with the West End Center to provide angel gifts for many years. The gift drop-offs turned Nair’s office into a mini Christmas workshop and filled the sidewalk when they were brought out to be collected by the center.