May 18, 2016

SVSU students to partner with Hidden Harvest for 2016 ‘Battle of the Valleys’

Saginaw Valley State University's Student Association has selected its charitable partner for the 14th annual “Battle of the Valleys” fundraising competition. SVSU students will raise funds for Hidden Harvest when they compete against their rivals from Grand Valley State University during the week-long challenge this coming fall.

Hidden Harvest strives to alleviate hunger and end food waste in the Great Lakes Bay Region. The organization provides a safe, coordinated system of rescuing surplus food and redistributing it – free of charge, – to recipient agencies that feed people in need.

Hidden Harvest rescues surplus food from area restaurants, food wholesalers, bakeries, grocery stores, farms, and anyplace else that has good, nutritious food to donate. SVSU Dining Services has participated as a food supplier for several years. Hidden Harvest then distributes good, surplus food to soup kitchens, food pantries, after-school programs, senior centers, shelters and other agencies serving those in need.

The SVSU Student Association hopes the selection will remind students at both schools of the importance and true meaning of “Battle of the Valleys,” which began in 2003 to capitalize upon the schools' football rivalry by raising funds for deserving non-profits. Over the past 13 years, the competition has generated $508,850 in charitable donations between the two schools. SVSU students have raised a total of $331,329, winning ten of the thirteen annual competitions.

In 2015, SVSU students raised $24,540 in one week for Get Outside for a Healthier Inside, an affiliate of the Saginaw Community Foundation whose goal is to increase physical activity and promote healthy living in Saginaw, focusing specifically on building parks and maintaining trails.

The 2016 “Battle of the Valleys” fundraising campaign will be held October 30-November 5.