The Citadel Rotaract Club delivers 131 bags of caring

In its first community service project, The Citadel Rotaract Club exceeded its goal in the Christmas Bags of Caring drive for area senior citizens.

Reaching out to families and friends, the Rotaract Club collected blankets, personal care items, holiday gifts, scarves, gloves, and more to make 131 bags that were delivered to Lowcountry seniors in need.

“We have always had the never-met goal of 100 bags but The Citadel Rotaract Club exceeded the item count to such a degree that we expanded our delivery areas from downtown Charleston and John's Island to include West Ashley, North Charleston, James Island, and Mount Pleasant,” said Christopher Keene, the project director at St. Matthews Church in downtown Charleston.

“To give scope to the project's success this year, one only has to hear that 63 bags were delivered in 2009,” he said.

“Our goal was to make a difference for seniors in our area. We set the bar high for our first community service project and we truly appreciate the generosity and support of The Citadel family,” said Crystal Hardwick, a Citadel Graduate College student who is also coordinator of the Christmas Bags of Caring Project and president of the campus Rotaract Club.

The Citadel Rotaract Club is a student-based service club sponsored by the Charleston Rotary Breakfast Club. The club was chartered this month by Rotary International.