Contact: Chassidy Holloway, Associate Executive Director, holloway@midwestconference.org
GRINNELL, Iowa – The 10th Annual Midwest Conference (MWC) SAAC Giving Challenge has officially concluded, highlighting the remarkable generosity of our student-athletes and nine member institutions. Over the four-week campaign, MWC campuses collected a combined total of 9,093 non-perishable items and $7,838 in monetary donations, underscoring their collective commitment to supporting their communities.
For the first time in the Challenge's history, Grinnell College emerged as the overall winner and top contributor. The Pioneers added 719 canned goods and $2,866 in the final week, finishing with an impressive equivalency of 6,708.
Illinois College claimed second place with an equivalency of 3,943, bolstered by a significant week four contribution of 1,990 non-perishable items.
Lawrence University, which led all teams after weeks two and three, closed out the Challenge in third place. The Vikings added 31 cans and $47 in the final week, bringing their total equivalency to 3,710.
Ripon College made a strong push in week four, collecting 2,317 non-perishable items. The Red Hawks finished in fourth place with an equivalency of 3,557.
Rounding out the top five was Lake Forest College, which recorded an equivalency of 2,824, thanks in large part to $1,123 in monetary donations during the final week.
Knox College secured sixth place with a week four contribution of 505 canned goods and $451, resulting in a total equivalency of 1,766.
Beloit College (958), Monmouth College (785), and Cornell College (518) completed the standings. The Buccaneers added 34 non-perishable items in the final week, while the Fighting Scots and Rams did not report any new contributions.
This year’s Challenge celebrated a decade of service by the MWC SAAC. Each campus team will donate their collected items and funds to local food pantries, shelters, or similar organizations. Throughout the history of the Challenge, MWC campuses have collectively donated more than 115,000 non-perishable items and $39,973 in monetary contributions.
The final standings after four weeks of collections are listed below.
|
Canned Food Items |
Monetary Donations |
Equivalency Total |
| Grinnell |
976 |
$2866 |
6708 |
| Illinois College |
3277 |
$333 |
3943 |
| Lawrence |
1692 |
$1009 |
3710 |
| Ripon |
2565 |
$496 |
3557 |
| Lake Forest |
0 |
$1412 |
2824 |
| Knox |
530 |
$618 |
1766 |
| Beloit |
38 |
$460 |
958 |
| Monmouth |
15 |
$385 |
785 |
| Cornell |
0 |
$259 |
518 |