Tara Halbritter

This Thanksgiving, students and professors in the human development and consumer and family sciences department did their part to help families in need over the holiday season.

Posters were put in the NFA and Pugsley Hall listing items needed to feed five local families on Thanksgiving.

Those involved accepted food donations and the Harvest Table Methodist Church distributed the items to less fortunate families.

The gesture was partly in recognition of November as National Family Month, but it was mainly an act of kindness on the department’s behalf.

Good deeds like this make it easier for students to call Brookings home, said freshman Jake Phillips, who is for from Winner.

He said he heard about the project through word-of-mouth.

“I’m glad students are getting involved to help the community,” Phillips said.

Lee Dockendorf, a freshman from Emery, saw the poster in Pugsley Hall.

“Seeing people come together to make things happen makes me feel like I’m back in a small town,” Dockendorf said.

Deb DeBates, a human development professor, was involved in the project.

“It’s a great way to celebrate the holiday. We’re sharing what we have with others who need it,” she said.