Rome, Ga. – A community service project led by Shorter University students collected 52 bags of clothing which were donated to the Hospitality House in Rome.

Senior History major Sydney Holmes said the campus project was designed to aid the Hospitality House, which provides a safe haven for women escaping domestic abuse. The clothing drive was organized by a Shorter student organization that is applying for full membership in the International Justice Mission (IJM); Holmes serves as the chapter’s president.

“I’m so proud of my campus, and I’m proud of my team,” Holmes said. “We are in awe of what God has done. I feel like it is important for the students to become involved in the community. We are all busy and most of us are broke, but everyone can give something. The students truly amazed us. We thought we would maybe receive just a few bags of clothing, but we received so much more. God moved the hearts of our students.”

The clothing drive was advertised on campus with collection bins placed in the women’s residence halls and the Fitton Student Union to make donating easy and convenient.

It was amazing to watch our campus come together to bless the community in this way. …We knew that God was going to take this small blessing and use it in ways we can never imagine.

“It was amazing to watch our campus come together to bless the community in this way,” Holmes said. “When we went to donate the bags, we filled an entire truck bed and my car. When we got to the Hospitality House, they were amazed by how much we had collected. I looked at my chapter members’ faces, and everyone was smiling and beaming. We knew that God was going to take this small blessing and use it in ways we can never imagine.”

“The Hospitality House does an amazing thing,” she added. “This safe house is funded through a thrift store. We decided to do the clothing drive because the clothes would not just help the thrift store and get funds for the house, but also the women who come there can come into the store and get whatever they need for themselves and their kids.”

IJM is a Christian organization that seeks to end human trafficking and slavery around the world. The organization brings attention to the plight of women and children who are subject to such abuse and works to send such practices.

Senior psychology major Kelsey Crump serves as the chapter’s vice president, and Marie Williams, a senior marketing major, is the group’s social media chair. Associate Professor of History Dr. Charles Carter is the group’s faculty adviser.

Founded in 1873, Shorter University is a Christ-centered, four-year liberal arts university committed to excellence in education. U.S. News & World Report and The Princeton Review annually include Shorter on their lists of best Southeastern Colleges. The university offers traditional bachelor’s degrees in 40 areas of study, online courses and degree programs, undergraduate programs for working adults, associate’s and master’s programs. Learn more about Shorter at www.shorter.edu.

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