December 2019

The UMPI Business Club did their annual Christmas Stocking fundraiser on Dec. 10. It is their largest fundraiser they do and allows the club to go an annual Business Club trip, this year they will be going to New York City.

Forms were sent out to parents, with an option for a large or small gift. The large gift (which was a stocking) with homemade treats, microwavable popcorn, hot chocolate, granola bars, candy canes, assorted candy, pens, pencils, highlighters, and stick notes; the small gift (which was a coffee mug) had a choice of hot chocolate, herbal or green tea, chocolate covered pretzel sticks, candy canes and assorted small candy. The parent or loved one could also do a personal message to be included on the tag and what name to put on the stocking.

This year, there were 25 large stockings and 12 mugs. The Business Club and Hootie Claus delivered the care packages and each student had their picture taken with Hootie. The club raised over $1,000.

The first annual UMPI Family Thanksgiving Day dinner for students on campus was a success! Faculty and staff provided a meal in the South Hall Faculty Lounge for any students that were on campus for Thanksgiving. There were a few anonymous donors who gave UMPI hats and snacks for all the students who came to dinner as well. They also had containers for students to take leftovers back to the dorms.

The Universities across the system are working together to establish a unified campus card through the OneCard initiative. It will be available to all students, faculty, staff, and community member campus cardholders by enhancing cross-campus ID card functionality beginning the spring 2020 semester. All campus cards will be accepted at any campus for dining purchases, including meal plans, dining dollars, and “campus bucks.” Campus bucks will now be available at all campuses, which is a new option for UMPI, UMF, and UMFK. It will also have an enhanced web portal for managing accounts and adding funds; mobile app for iOS and Android devices; the ability to pay using Apple Wallet and continued access to all of the services existing campus cards provide.

Want another great reason to read through the image newsletter? Well, somewhere in this issue of the image is our very own owl emoji. Here’s the challenge: just find it (don’t tell anyone else its’ hiding place!), let our office know, and you could be eligible for a $5 gift certificate to UMPI Starbucks! A winner will be randomly drawn from all of the people who find the emoji on Friday, Dec. 20. You can win one time per semester. Congratulations to our November winner, Kathy Higgins!

To let us know you’ve found it, either click on the emoji and fill out the very short form, or email Gayla Shaw with the location at gshaw@maine.edu. Happy searching!

The UMPI Owl Relay for Life Team had another very successful silent auction this year with a total of 65 items donated. There were various items that included clothing, jewelry, homemade goodies, dish cloths, books, household goods, a dog gift basket, and decorative glass. There were many items that had a lot of bidding and some of the biggest “bidding wars” were for the Lush Bath Bombs, Danielle’s peanut butter balls, Barb’s fudge, and Sharon’s peanut brittle. A total of $1,086 was raised and the team would like to thank everyone for donating items and for bidding.

The UMPI Food Pantry received non-perishable donations in October from the members of the Disabled American Veterans Smart Ricker Chapter 10 and the Disabled American Veterans Auxiliary Unit 10. Supplies in the Food Pantry are donated for UMPI students and include convenience foods, personal hygiene items such as deodorant and body wash, food staples, and student supplies. Volunteers from the Student Organization of Social Workers are responsible for monitoring the pantry. FMI, contact adviser Shirley Rush at shirley.rush@maine.edu.