BOSTON - The America East Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) collected 2,933 food items during the Fall #AEFoodFrenzy. The #AEFoodFrenzy is a conference-wide community service initiative designed to promote cohesion between America East’s member institutions while also providing significant donations to several charities in campus communities.

Each of the conference’s nine member institutions conducted a canned food drive during the Fall season. All canned goods, minus one box of goods, was then donated to a charity of the institution’s choice.  The one remaining box was donated to a partnering institution’s charity of choice as a sign of the unified community service event.

Here are the final numbers for the fall:

The initiative will continue throughout the Winter and Spring as student-athletes from partnering institutions will exchange boxes of goods prior to select America East events . The exchanges will take place prior to conference contests in basketball, as well as the 2016 America East Outdoor Track & Field Championship.

The initiative was the idea of Toni Onikeku, a UMass Lowell track and field student-athlete and SAAC member, who passed away tragically in August. America East SAAC is carrying out this initiative in honor of Onikeku and his passion for community service.

The #AEFoodFrenzy reflects the missions of both the America East SAAC and the conference at large. The America East Conference and all its members are dedicated to impacting, engaging and growing a community that reflects the values and convictions of the conference.

Benefitting Food Pantries
Albany –Regional Food Bank of Northeastern, NY
Binghamton – Bear Necessities Pantry
Hartford – Food Share of Bloomfield, CT
Maine – Manna Ministries
UMBC – Maryland Food Bank
UMass Lowell – Merrimack Valley Food Bank
New Hampshire – Cornucopia Food Pantry
Stony Brook – Stony Brook University On-Campus Food Pantry
Vermont – Chittenden Emergency Food Shelf

Partnering Institutions
Albany and Binghamton
Hartford and UMass Lowell
UMBC and Stony Brook
Maine, New Hampshire and Vermont