Contact: Maridith Geuder
STARKVILLE, Miss.--As one service component of the 2010 Maroon Edition common reading program, the university will collect items for a non-profit foundation that provides supplies for school-aged children in war-torn Afghanistan.
This year's freshman common book is Greg Mortenson's "Three Cups of Tea," a New York Times best-seller that describes his commitment to reducing poverty and educating young girls in Pakistan and Afghanistan. Mortenson will visit the MSU campus Sept 23.
"We looked for a way that we could support the goals of Mortenson's book and involve our campus, community, and alumni while raising awareness," said Adele Crudden, co-chair of the Maroon Edition outreach efforts and director of MSU's social work program.
Working through the Lamia Afghan Foundation, based in Nashville, Tenn., the Maroon Edition committee will sponsor a campus drive to collect backpacks and school supplies needed to fill them, Crudden said.
Mortenson's Central Asia Institute raises funds to support the school-building efforts, added Maroon Edition chair Linda Morse, director of the Center for Teaching and Learning.
"We encourage those who wish to contribute that way to consider doing so," she said. "We decided we could best engage others and build cultural awareness by collecting items that school children need."
A major campus drive is scheduled for Sept. 25, the weekend of the MSU-Georgia football game on campus. A collection pod will be located between Colvard Student Union and the YMCA building on East Lee Boulevard beginning Friday, Sept. 24 and will be removed after the game.
Among supplies needed for each backpack are:
--New fabric backpacks [not plastic]
--1 package of lined notebook paper
--1 composition book
--2 packages of No. 2 pencils with erasers
--1 box of colored pencils
--1 box of Crayola crayons
--1 pair of blunt-end scissors
--Ruler [1x12-inch, with metric markings]
--Zippered pencil bag
Throughout the planning, Crudden has been in touch with Lt. Gen. (Ret.) John Bradley, and his wife, Jan, co-founders of the nonprofit Lamia Afghan Foundation. "Both work entirely as volunteers," she emphasized. "There are no paid staff members in Lamia."
Items collected by Mississippi State will be sent to Afghanistan on Air Force transports on a space-available basis. The Bradleys will meet the supplies in Afghanistan and assist the military with delivery to schools sanctioned both by the United States and Afghanistan.
"Both the Student Association and the Starkville community are actively engaged in our efforts," said Crudden, adding that Starkville Reads has adopted "Three Cups of Tea" and the Student Association will support a variety of outreach efforts.
For more information about the campus drive, contact Crudden at 662-325-8859 or crudden@ra.msstate.edu.
For more information on the foundation, see http://lamia-afghanfoundation.org/index.htm/. For more about Maroon Edition, see http://www.maroonedition.msstate.edu/. For more information about how to contribute to Mortenson's Central Asia Institute, see https://www.ikat.org//.