From now until the end of October, the Lipscomb bookstore is offering a promotion where customers can receive 25- percent off a regular-priced hoodie after donating a gently-used hoodie. All of the collected hoodies will be donated to Nashville Rescue Mission.
“Our other schools are very on board, and everybody knows it happens every year,” said Kelsey Bucknam, an employee of the Lipscomb bookstore.
“We’re hoping that becomes such a strong tradition here.”
The program started in 2011 and has also been an annual event at nearby Trevecca University.
If students cannot afford a hoodie, the bookstore has provided a list of other items that the rescue mission is accepting. These smaller and more affordable items ensure that all students can participate.
Tree of Life, the organization that operates the Lipscomb bookstore, hopes the event will positively impact the entire Nashville community, starting with, but not limited to, the student body.
“We want our store to be more than a campus store,” Bucknam said. “We want to pour into the community.
“The hoodies must be gently-used. Obviously, we want them to be good quality. We want to show dignity to the people we’re donating to.”
Immediately inside the bookstore is a display with various facts about homelessness. Many of these are centered around poverty in Nashville, and others are holiday-themed.
If students are unable to donate in person, Tree of Life has set up a website where customers can purchase a new hoodie, and the bookstore will then donate one of their own to the mission. The online shop’s website is www.mkt.com/lipscomb.