One of the biggest activities of the Benet Christmas Drive is the Christmas Drive shopping trip. For this event, students, in groups of 3-5 people, buy gifts and groceries for families in need in the local community. This year, around 70 students participated in the event. It started bright and early when the Benet students gathered in St. Daniel hall at 8:20 a.m. They began the day with a presentation explaining what they were buying and how the day would unfold. Then, the groups traveled to Myers to start shopping. Most were assigned specific families to shop for, but around ten groups shopped for groceries for the Dominican Literacy Center. The shopping lasted for an hour and a half, as the volunteers picked out the items they were to donate. Along with the students, many Benet staff members were also helping out and making sure that the event ran smoothly. They helped out at the cash registers and paid for all the goods with Myers gift cards purchase with last year’s Christmas Drive funds.
Around 11:45 a.m., the groups left the store and returned to the Benet cafeteria where they wrapped and consumed pizza. Then those who shopped for individual families went to the families’ homes, while the shoppers for the Dominican Learning Center went to the organization itself. No matter who they were shopping for however, each student was able to personally interact with those who received the gifts they purchased. It is safe to say that this year’s Christmas Drive shopping was a success. We can only hope that it will be able to continue to serve those in need for years to come.