The Kent State Police Department is continuing efforts to give back to the community by raising money for local organizations.

It began the holiday effort by donating 25 turkeys and $200 worth of Acme Fresh Market gift cards to Kent Social Services.

In order to raise money for these local causes, the Kent State Police Department used common fundraisers, including “No Shave November” and “Movember.” This year, university police created a fundraiser with an inclusive twist called “Glow, Grow and Give.”

“That way, not only are the male officers and employees growing beards out, but the female employees and officers have the opportunity to donate and dye a part of their hair pink or blue,” said Tricia Knoles, the community resource officer for the Kent State Police Department. “We decided to use the money to benefit local charities, so today we’re benefitting Kent Social Services.”

Knoles attributed the idea to Officer Vance Voyles. He said while raising money was successful last year, the department did not see a direct impact on the Kent community and wanted to change that this year.

Last year, the department did “No Shave November” because members wanted to raise money for cancer treatment.

“We donated the money and felt good about it, but we didn’t really get to see the impact,” Voyles said. “This year we wanted to do something that was a little bit more immediate and for the community.”

Voyles reached out to Marquice Seward, the assistant program manager at Kent Social Services, to figure out how the department could donate to Kent Social Services.

“I think it’s important for everybody to realize that everybody wants to do stuff for people overseas, but we have a lot of things going on here that we need to help out with,” Voyles said.

Kent Social Services estimates to assist about 1,400 families throughout the holiday season.

“We will give out close to 800 (turkeys) at Thanksgiving, and then another 800 at Christmas,” Seward said.  

Kent Social Services receive the meals through donations from the surrounding community, Seward said.

“It’s very heartwarming that people come together and make a difference because this is how we do it,” Seward said. “This means a lot to us.”

Madison MacArthur is the safety reporter. Contact her at [email protected].