By Tim Leeds
Food donations will be greatly appreciated at the Montana State University-Northern basketball games on Feb. 14.
The donations are not for the Lights or Skylights. All non-perishable food items donated will go to the Havre Food Bank.
Cyndi Murphy, managing director of the food bank, said $1 will be taken off the price of a ticket to the game with a donation to the food bank. Season ticket holders will receive a free medium pop with a donation, she said.
Murphy said everyone who contributes to the food drive will also be entered into a drawing to be held at halftime during the Lights game. One basketball autographed by the Lights team will be given to a male food donator, and one autographed by the Skylights team will be given to a female food donator.
The games, to be televised on local cable access, channel 19, start at 6 p.m. on Monday, Feb. 14. The MSU-Northern teams will face the Montana Tech Orediggers out of Butte.
Murphy said the food bank is also planning its Second Annual Can-Struction event to be held at the Havre Holiday Village Shopping Center on Sunday, March 26.
Murphy said that participants will build statues or constructions out of canned food items they have gathered for the event. She said three independent judges will select winners in several categories.
The categories of judging will include the most cans used, the best structure, the best structure by a family, and the best use of labels on the cans in the construction. She said the audience will also vote on the the most popular construction.
Murphy said the winners in the categories will receive plaques, and each entry will be given a photo of their construction. All food collected and used in the event will be donated to the Havre Food Bank, Murphy said.
The idea for the event came from Las Vegas, Murphy said. She said it is a major event down there, where professional architectural firms often try to outdo themselves with their creations.
"It's really something to see," she said.
Murphy said now would be a good time to start collecting canned food for the event. The more contestants have, the bigger and fancier the structure they can build, she said.
Murphy said The Feinstein Foundation out of Cranston, R.I. will be helping with a drive for the food bank in March. She said every dollar donated will be matched by the foundation, up to $1 million nationwide. If participating organizations raise over $1 million in March, Murphy said, the matching funds will have to be split between participants at a lesser match totaling $1 million.
The Feinstein Foundation is also circulating a petition asking for the federal government to end hunger in America. A petition is available at the Havre Food Bank, and is also available on-line at www.feinsteinfoundation.com.
