THE SHIAWASSEE YOUTH ADVISORY COUNCIL (YAC) celebrated Family Volunteer Day Saturday, Nov. 18 at the Salvation Army Citadel in Owosso by boxing and handing out 40 family-sized Thanksgiving dinners – or “Caring Cornucopias” – to food insecure Shiawassee County families. The boxes included a turkey, stuffing, cranberries, corn, rolls, potatoes, beans, cookies and a foil roaster pan.
Shiawassee YAC members (from left) Grace Knickerbocker, Brianna Love, Ben Clark, Katie Wolgast, Caleb Love, Marisa Rose, and Eve Hickey can be seen standing amongst their 40 completed cornucopias on the morning of Nov. 18. Advisor Jessica Hickey, and a number of parents and volunteers assisted the group members in packing the food into boxes. After the food was packed, the families then arrived to pick up the meals.
The YAC funded the Caring Cornucopia project, which it undertook for the second consecutive year, with a $500 grant from “generationOn” and the Walt Disney Company, along with a matching $500 from the YAC’s W.K. Kellogg Fund.
The group is comprised of Shiawassee County-area residents between the ages of 12 to 21 years old. They meet once a month to plan and coordinate their schedule, which consists of volunteering in the community in a number of ways. In October, the group helped with the downtown Owosso litter clean up, and they will be serving hot cocoa aboard the Polar Express this holiday season.
The YAC will be adopting 75 children through the Capital Area Community Services Christmas Wishes program this holiday season. The YAC will use a substantial portion of its $3,500 annual endowment from the Shiawassee Community Foundation to purchase and distribute Christmas toys to the 75 children throughout Shiawassee County.
For more information about the Shiawassee YAC, individuals can visit www.shiacf.org/youth-advisory-council/. The page contains links to the group’s social media page(s) for anyone interested in following the YAC’s future endeavors.
(Independent Photo/Graham Sturgeon)
