This year, Black Student Union (BSU) is holding a clothing drive to donate to Gifts for the Homeless  in Washington DC. The drive started on Nov. 30 and will continue until Dec. 11. This week, tjTODAY interviewed senior Connor Jones about the drive.

Q: Could you tell me a little bit about the clothing drive?

A: This is the second annual BSU clothing drive. Last year we were able to collect over 60 pounds of clothes for donation to homeless shelters in DC, and this year we wanted to replicate that and maybe even do more. The drive is going to be this week and we’re looking to expand next week as well.

Q: What is the club collecting for donations?

A: We’re just trying to collect any types of clothing, and anything helps. T-shirts, socks, underwear, jackets, the whole nine yards, we’re just looking for anything because there really are other people in need, and it’s the season for giving, so why not give back?

Q: Could you tell me the process of what happens when you get the clothes?

A: The clothes are collected from the boxes, weighed, and then taken to various homeless shelter through the charity Gifts for the Homeless that’s in the Washington DC area.

Q: Are there any teachers involved in this or is it just students?

A: We have our two sponsors, Ms. Smith and Ms. Taylor, and they’re very supportive in our efforts and they encourage us to do things like this. We love them to death and we’re really glad that they’re there to support us in this drive.

Q: How does this program and the Black Students Union affect you as in individual?

A: As an individual, the club has helped me more learn more about being a leader and how much impact on the community I can actually make. For example, we do three major community service projects throughout the year, and it’s really taught me planning and organizing and how to handle it all. It’s also taught me that it’s really important to give back, and this charity drive, really makes me reflect on how I feel walking through the streets of Washington DC. For example, if I see someone who doesn’t have that much, I always think, “I really wish I could give them food or clothing or something that they really need”, so through this drive I feel like I can help a little bit and give back in some way, and it makes me feel good.

Q: Could you tell me about the other community service events BSU holds?

A: We do a Better World book drive during Black History Month in February and it’s a month-long event where we have people bring in books to donate. Last year we only did it for two weeks that month and we got around 170 books and donated them to Better World books. The organization spreads the books throughout smaller organizations around the world. So they’ll send books to places like Africa and DC, which have a lot of impoverished students. We also do TJ Inspire, which is a mentoring program where we go to elementary schools and reach out to minority students to get them excited for STEM because there’s not that much encouragement from their areas.