South Dakota Mines Students Make Impact on Community and Peers through Day of Service Tradition
South Dakota Mines students will once again commemorate the memory of Martin Luther King, Jr. by following his legacy of service.
In observance of the national holiday, student groups will volunteer to collect food and cash donations at local grocery stores. The food drive benefits Feeding South Dakota, a statewide hunger relief organization, and the university's student food pantry.
This is the 15th year students have organized the annual food drive, which will take place from 3 – 6 p.m. on Monday, Jan. 20. Student volunteers will be at the following locations in Rapid City and Box Elder: Timmons Neighborhood Market in Rapid City and Box Elder, both Safeway locations, Walmart on Lacrosse, both Family Fare locations and Sam’s Club in Rushmore Crossing.
"For the 15th year now, South Dakota Mines has been honored to commend the memory of Martin Luther King, Jr. with a food drive organized and implemented by our students,” said Joe Dlugos, Ph.D., Mines dean of students. “Many of our students are committed to not only enhancing their reputation as skilled future scientists and engineers, but also first-rate citizens who have a passion for service and uplifting the general public. It is my hope that seeing so many South Dakota Mines students serving this way in the community on a federal holiday will inspire others to consider how they can make an impact here in the Black Hills."
The annual food drive honors Dr. King’s legacy and is an opportunity for Rapid City
residents to renew their vows of citizenship through service to others. Student organizations
participating include the Association of Technology, Management, and Applied Engineering
(ATMAE), Formula Hardrocker Racing, Society of Physics Students, National Society
of Black Engineers (N.S.B.E.), Delta Sigma Phi, Beta Delta Mu, Lambda Chi Alpha, Theta
Tau, American Indian Science & Engineering Society (AISES) and Society of Asian Scientists
and Engineers (SASE). Student groups brought in more than 2,200 pounds of food and
nearly $900 during the 2024 food drive.
To help support students' efforts, South Dakota Mines annually partners with Black Hills Federal Credit Union (BHFCU) to help fundraise and collect canned goods and other non-perishables as part of the food drive. Collection bins are located at the five Rapid City BHFCU Member Service Centers and on the South Dakota Mines campus. Drop-off locations on the Mines Campus include the physics office, front entries of the McLaury Building and Surbeck Center, the Vanderboom Laboratory for Entrepreneurial Research (V-Lab) and the King Center.
Checks can be made out to Feeding South Dakota. Cash donations will be used to purchase food for the Mines student food pantry and donated to Feeding South Dakota.