Iowa Central Students Spread Holiday Cheer and Meals Through Community Service

Emily Denholm, Public Information Office
12/9/2024

Iowa Central students are extending their impact beyond local service to make a difference on a global scale. On December 7, members of the Iowa Central Student Government and InterVarsity collaborated with local community members in a 500-volunteer initiative to package meals for the organization Feed My Starving Children.

The event, hosted in the gymnasium of Community Christian School, marked the final MobilePack™ event in Iowa for 2024 and the 8th annual event in Fort Dodge. Over the course of three shifts, community volunteers transformed the school gym into a bustling assembly line to prepare MannaPacks ^®.

Before entering the gym, volunteers donned hairnets, reviewed the packing process, and completed handwashing procedures. The MannaPack ^®, a "fortified rice and soy blend," include rice, soy, dehydrated vegetables, and vitamin powder. Each bag was carefully weighed, sealed, and boxed before being loaded onto a semitrailer for global distribution.

The atmosphere was electric, with community groups uniting under a shared goal: packing as many meals as possible to help feed children in need worldwide. Each time a box was filled with 36 MannaPacks ^®—equivalent to 216 meals—volunteers cheered to celebrate their progress.

Iowa Central students contributed to packing a total of 105,850 meals during the event, enough to provide food for 290 children for an entire year.