Campus News

Donations for Citations spring drive draws large participation

Mark Cornelison | UK Photo

LEXINGTON, Ky. (March 26, 2024) — The University of Kentucky community responded in large numbers to this year’s Donations for Citations spring drive.

A total of 540 people made the decision to start spring with a clean slate, while benefitting UK’s Big Blue Pantry (BBP) at the same time.

At least 2,831 pounds of food and personal care items were donated during the two-week drive. In fact, so much was contributed that BBP was able to share some of the collected canned goods with other area food banks.

This is the ninth year for the Donations for Citations program, which helps stock BBP’s shelves. Since its inception in 2016, Donations for Citations has become the Pantry’s largest contributor. 

The drive enables UK students and employees who have a parking citation to pay their fee by donating to the Pantry, an on-campus organization that works to combat hunger and food insecurity. This year’s spring drive began on Feb. 26 and ran through March 8.

“For this drive, we requested some specific food and personal care items and once again, the UK community came through in a big way,” said Andrew Perkins, manager of BBP. “We continue to be grateful for this partnership with Transportation Services.”

BBP accepts donations from the campus community year-round. Visit the Pantry’s website for information about hours of operation or to offer donations outside of this program.

BBP also has an online gift fund which allows the organization to accept monetary donations that are used to purchase food items. 

As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.   

In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.