Fall festival and kickball tournament to be held Oct. 8

The first event of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Reach 13,000 Food Drive has the campaign well on the way to reaching its goal of collecting 13,000 donated food items. 

More than 1,800 food items were donated at the Sept. 16 kickoff event. During Constitution Day, volunteers accepted food items, while helping people register to vote.

Something that made the day a success was the antics of graduate assistant Dillon Nash. People could pay $1 or donate one food item for a piece of tape to duct tape Nash to a chair.

“Some people came with $20 or $30 just to have the chance to duct tape Dillon to that chair,” said Amber Standridge, coordinator of the Chancellor’s Leadership Corps.

The food collected during the campaign, which will run through Nov. 4, will be donated to the UALR Trojan Food Pantry, Staff Senate’s Helping Hands, the 12th Street Clinic, and the Arkansas Food Bank.

The campaign will continue with the UALR Fall Festival and Kickball Tournament on Saturday, Oct. 8, at the Coleman Sports and Recreation Complex on the south side of campus. The day’s events will begin with the Fall Festival from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., and the kickball tournament will start at 3 p.m.

The family friendly Fall Festival will feature games, arts and crafts, and face and pumpkin painting, as well as obstacle bounce houses and other inflatables. Admission is $5 or five nonperishable food items per person. Those who are interested in sponsoring a table at the Fall Festival can do so by filling out an online form.

To participate in the Kickball Tournament, visit the tournament’s website to register a team of nine to 12 players. The team entry fee is a donation of 60 nonperishable items or $100. All teams need to be registered no later than noon on Wednesday, Oct. 5.

UALR student organization and departments can also participate in a campus-wide competition to see who collects the most items for the food drive. At the end of the campaign, the winners will receive a trophy in honor of their dedication to fighting hunger. Departments can request a food drive donation box by filling out an online form.