Drake Ives ’22 made the most of her semester project for her ethnography class.
She used it as a fundraiser for Ruth’s Gleanings, a Spartanburg nonprofit whose mission is to increase access to fresh, healthy foods.
She used it to support Big Leagues Ball Club, a one-on-one coaching business for young athletes, that she started with Rivers Clarke ’21, an English and studio arts major from Columbia, South Carolina.
And on Wednesday, she used it to reward the people who kept the Wofford campus open and safe during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“I thought how great would it be if we all lived like we were on a team together,” says Ives, a business economics major from Sumter, South Carolina. “That’s what this project did. It brought together two different things to work together, and it was really beneficial.”
Through Big Leagues Ball Club, Ives purchased 95 boxes of fresh fruit and vegetables from Ruth’s Gleanings. The boxes contain about 15 pounds of food. She also got Campus Union involved and Ruth’s Gleanings profits will be used toward its goal of purchasing a refrigerated food truck.
Ives laid the groundwork for the project while studying remotely during the spring semester.
“I like face-to-face interaction,” she says. “This helped me learn how to communicate well over email.”
On Wednesday, Ives and a handful of volunteers delivered the boxes – packed with lettuce, potatoes, corn, strawberries and other items – to Wofford’s COVID heroes on behalf of the entire student body. The majority of boxes went to Facilities staff, with the remainder going to Campus Safety and the Wellness Center.
“This is such a nice gesture,” says Ricky Shehan, the office manager for Facilities. “That’s the thing about Wofford overall, we get so much support from students and their families.”
Campus Safety Director Randy Hall looked on as Ives and her crew stacked boxes in his department.
“This is absolutely a nice surprise,” Hall says. “It’s very much appreciated.”