U-Turn Ahead

Campuswide donation effort gaining support

April 17, 2007

At last year's U-Turn, coordinator Anya Malkov '08 (right) gives instructions to student volunteers.

On the road to sustainability and philanthropy, Dickinson College is making a U-Turn.

And that's a good thing.

This spring marks the third-annual U-Turn all-campus yard sale. College students, faculty members and employees are encouraged to donate items—anything from clothing and lamps to futons and microwaves—at various drop-off and collection sites in May. The items will be donated to the United Way of Carlisle and Cumberland County, which will sell them at the annual yard sale at the Carlisle Fairgrounds on June 9.

Proceeds from the sale will go to the United Way. Last year, the sale raised $11,000 for the United Way, up from about $7,000 in 2005, the first year for the U-Turn fund-raiser.

"We hope to meet or exceed what we raised last year," said U-Turn coordinator Anya Malkov '08. The program title stems from a 2005 brainstorming session in which students coined the phrase, "U-Turn: Turn your second hand into someone's second chance."

"We're finding that people don't just donate because they want to get rid of something," Malkov added. "They're doing it because it's a good cause." Beyond the obvious goodwill aspect of the U-Turn program, the event dovetails with the college's mission of engagement by serving as a collaborative effort between student organizations and administrative departments and between the college and the Carlisle community.

For information, contact Malkov at malkovaa@dickinson.edu. Following are some key dates in the U-Turn program:

• May 5: Door-to-door kickoff, 1-4 p.m.; Faculty drop-off tent by Drayer Hall, South College Street, 10 a.m.-4 p.m.
• May 9: Pickup day, 1-4 p.m.
• May 12: Pickup day, 1-4 p.m.
• May 16: Pickup day, 1-4 p.m.
• May 19: Door-to-door pickups from seniors, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.