The Catholic L.I.F.E. organization, in conjunction with the Respect Life Office in Miami, will hold the Respect Life Donation Drive from Monday Nov. 27 through Friday Dec. 8.
Marta Vargas, director of Catholic L.I.F.E, said that this event “is about [supporting] with each other” adding, “in this particular case, we are walking alongside parents that need a little help as they prepare for their joyful arrival, their baby.”
The collection drive will be all around campus collecting baby items that will help these families. The Respect Life Office in Miami helps families in need, not only with material items, but also by offering classes and support to parents.
This event will take place in celebration of the birth of Jesus Christ. Vargas explained that many of the parents have their set of hardships as Mary and Joseph did when they were expecting Jesus to be born.
Vargas said the purpose of the event is to “celebrate life, new life and what it means because it’s an opportunity to gather around, to [stand] with each other and celebrate the gift each person is.”
The time of the event is no coincidence.
“It’s timed in such a way it falls during the time of advent, which is that preparing, that time of waiting for that beautiful arrival…there’s like a parallel there,” Vargas said, adding, “We are here to make the joy, the hope, come alive in each other…I think ultimately it’s about that, it’s making a difference, being the difference in each other.”
Claudia Stevens, junior president of Catholic L.I.F.E., said that this event was created to bring awareness of the difficulties many people go through in this time of the year.
“We forget to take a minute and step back and say, ‘wow, there’s a bigger community out there who really need our help,’ and instead of buying a toy, buy something that they actually need like diapers or food,” Stevens said.
All students can be involved in this event. Catholic L.I.F.E invites everyone to go to their meetings Mondays from 4:30 – 5:30 p.m. in the Alvin Sherman Library. For those that can’t make it to a meeting but would still like to help, they can donate goods.
“We will have donation boxes throughout the university. There will be one in the [Alvin Sherman] library, DeSantis and Parker buildings and the residence halls,” Stevens said.
Additionally, if a student would like to volunteer for this cause, Catholic L.I.F.E, along with the Respect Life Office, has multiple volunteer opportunities on and off campus.
