JACKSON CENTER — Members of the Jackson Center/UVCC FCCLA chapter have been collaborating with students, staff, FCS Classes, FCCLA members, The Fish Pond Food Pantry, Rustic Hope and the Shelby County Animal Shelter to carry out a service project called “Cups and Cuddles.” The project idea was born out of the latest craze over fancy drinkware, such as Stanley’s and Owala’s.

As people acquire the new and trendy drinkware items, a surplus of unwanted and unused cups overflows the cupboards of some families. Rather than these items being tossed, members set out to collect, sanitize and repurpose these cups for a greater need.

“We have all heard from our parents that if you are going to have these new cups you’re going to need to get rid of some of them in order to make room in the cupboards,” said co-chair Maleah Kipker.

As a result, the group started a school wide cup drive in hopes of collecting 50 cups to be filled with personal hygiene items for donation within the community.

“We were overwhelmed and excited to have 138 usable cups donated, which allowed us to extend our outreach beyond our local food pantry,” said co-chair Corinne York.

The chapter voted to use funds received from winning several national awards this past year to purchase toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, body soap, shampoo, and washcloths to fill the cups.

“We decided to put treats in each cup, so the kid’s cups had a sucker and the adult cups contained a granola bar,” said co-chair Cortney Copeland.

The thought behind the project was that these cups would serve a purpose beyond something to drink from by including self-care items. Members were concerned that if a family or individual is struggling to put food on the table these self-care items may be even farther out of reach. Completed cups were shared with the Fish Pond Food Pantry and Rustic Hope.

The group decided they weren’t done yet, as they discovered another item people often have an excess of … blankets. The group hoped to collect 20 blankets to cut, sew and repurpose for the Shelby County Animal Shelter. Chapter members were generous with their donations, and with the help of the Interior Design class, the FCCLA was able to donate 48 usable blankets to the shelter along with 100 homemade dog treats which were made by the Culinary class.

With their outreach, the FCCLA was able to reach over 300 people/pets with their efforts.

“Giving back to your community just gives you such a good feeling. Knowing that you are helping someone, it just can’t help but make you smile,” said Kipker.