The Print Edition by Reflector Editor

4 | FRIDAY, OCTOBER 4, 2013

THE REFLECTOR

NEWS

Starkville businesses participate in charity BY JAMIE ALLEN Staff Writer

Starkville is known as “Mississippi’s College Town,” but many businesses want to do more for the world around them than just provide Bulldog fans with game-day grub or the trendiest outfits. These businesses have found ways, such as selling charitable items or donating a portion of sales to charities, to help people both here in Starkville and across the globe. Three of these businesses include Denim & Lace, Firehouse Subs and Deep South Pout. These businesses each saw a need and decided to do something about it. Located in downtown Starkville, Denim and Lace, formerly known as Harmonie Boutique, opened this summer. Along with the clothes in the store, Denim & Lace also has many charitable items. These items are made by womKAITLIN MULLINS | THE REFLECTOR en across the globe and sold in Products benefiting the Reclaimed Project are available for stores similar to this to bring a purchase at Deep South Pout and help the community. profit to these women. Items sold by Denim & Lace include fashionABLE scarves a better life,” Ray said. opportunity to donate money made by women in Ethiopia, Ray said the reason she de- to this foundation through Sseko sandals and Ember Arts cided to include these items in the sale of pickle buckets, cash jewelry made by women in her store is because she wanted donations made at the register Uganda and Peace Cord brace- to carry items that help other and through the “Round Up” lets made by widows of Afghan people. program through which guests soldiers. Other charitable items “At many places it is all about can round their bill up to the they sell are Pura Vida brace- fashion, but I wanted people to nearest dollar amount. lets, made by artisans in Costa see that they could ‘shop with William Craig, owner and Rica, and locally-made glasses meaning,’ and that they could general manager of Firehouse from wine or champagne bot- buy pretty things but also help Subs in Starkville, said in an tles to support breast cancer others at the same time,” Ray email this foundation donates research. money to scholarships, fire said. Erin Ray, owner of Denim Another new business to prevention education and the & Lace, said the organizations Starkville that stands out for its purchase of crucial emergengive women an opportunity to charitable giving is Firehouse cy response equipment such better their lives. Subs. Founded in 2005 after as thermal imaging equip“In other areas of the world, Hurricane Katrina, Firehouse ment and extraction tools also women are often oppressed. Subs raises money for the Fire- known as the “jaws of life.” This gives them jobs so that house Subs Public Safety Foun“Each Firehouse Subs restauthey can make money and have dation. It gives customers the rant raises money for the foun-

dation year-round, and individual restaurants are able to work with local first responder organizations and request grant money. In this way, the money we raise has a local, direct impact on our community.” Craig said. “To date, we’ve donated more than $61,000 to the state of Mississippi and are hoping to make a donation locally in the area next year.” As businesses follow this trend and give to people in need, Deep South Pout is another to be recognized for its charitable giving. As the founder of the Reclaimed Project, its mission is threefold: help the underprivileged in the community, give adoption grants to local families and support orphan care centers in Botswana, Africa. They provide a portion of each sale to Reclaimed Project as well as allow customers to support it through the 127 initiative. Through this initiative, they ask customers to donate $0.27 to the Reclaimed Project at the time of check out. Juva Juice and Stinky Feet have also joined this initiative. Justin Oswalt, owner of Deep South Pout, said since it was founded in 2011, they have always wanted to give to charity. “As a Christian organization, from the beginning, we felt led to give two percent of our sales from sales to various charities. As business picked up and donations became bigger and bigger we wanted a way to have a say in exactly what the money was used for,” Oswalt said. Because proceeds from Bulldog Bash go toward the Reclaim Project, Oswalt said he looks forward to this weekend as it will expose many visitors to Reclaimed Project. “Reclaimed Project is very

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“We like to have a good relationship with the housing department here on campus so that we can request special housing for the students in need,” White said. Some students require bathrooms and special navigation, and the Student Support Services center serves as an advocacy for students. The center also provides help for students who are first generation or from low-income families. Jermaine Jackson, Student Support Services coordinator, said the center accepts 160 students through a loan called

new, but we have already given 10 $15,000 adoption grants,” Oswalt said. “As Bulldog Bash is supporting Reclaimed Project this year, we are hoping to be able to expose more people to this and have more volunteers and interns as a result.”

KAITLIN MULLINS | THE REFLECTOR

FashionABLE, sustainability-centered brand sold at Denim & Lace, creates opportunities for women in Africa.

BRIANT MARSH | COURTESY PHOTO

Firehouse Subs raises money for the Firehouse Subs Public Safety Foundation, which promotes emergency preparation.

continued from 1 TRIO. The loan provides first generation and low-income students with the resources they need to get off on the right foot. “We accept first generation students or students from low-income families. We also accept students whose parents may have earned an associate’s degree,” Jackson said. Jackson said the graduation rate for the TRIO program was 64 percent last year, and 92 percent of the students involved in the program maintain a GPA higher than a 2.0. “We offer the Jumpstart program to the freshman class

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For more information about any of these businesses and their charity involvement, those interested may visit their local stores. Also, for information on how Bulldog Bash supports Reclaimed Project visit msubulldogbash.com.

and Finish Line to our seniors. These programs provide the students the help they need with time management skills and organization,” Jackson said. Zach Woolley, a 23-year-old student from Birmingham, Ala., said he benefits greatly from the services provided to him here at MSU. “I have cerebral palsy, which is brain damage at birth,” Woolley said. Woolley, a political science and philosophy double major, said MSU afforded him an opportunity that other schools would not. “These guys are awesome. If you have a disability, sometimes you encounter a roadblock here or there. Student Support Services here at MSU makes it an even playing field,” Woolley said.

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