Massachusetts Daily Collegian: Nov. 25, 2013

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NO MATCH UMass Hockey blanked

‘Yeezus’ comes to TD Garden

on the road by Vermont PAGE 8

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THE MASSACHUSETTS

A free and responsible press

DAILY COLLEGIAN DailyCollegian.com

Monday, November 25, 2013

By Catherine Ferris Collegian Staff

The money that is donated would go toward rent while the store is closed and transitioning to a smaller space. It would also pay for necessary reconstruction materials, new books and go toward keeping debt payments at bay while there is no income during the closing. While there have been financial problems for the past three years, Johnston said, “This summer, we saw potential for this campaign.” The store offers events for the public; however the events in November could have made more money. While there are not any December events planned yet, there are ideas that are bouncing back and forth. Johnston goes on to say that competing with the bigger names, like Chegg and Amazon is difficult today, especially because of the easy online order choices. “I loved going to a bookstore when I was in college. It was very satisfying,” Johnston said. One of their efforts in trying to be more appealing with students is filling orders online by walking across the street to the post office, and mailing textbooks to students less than a mile away. Decency is also a factor which Johnston said is an important part of owning a business. “We have been clear and honest about our store. If we don’t have a book in the store, we won’t advertise for it,” she said. The store needs $5,000 by the end of November, and the rest by the end of December. Food for Thought’s indie go go account link can be found on the store’s website.

Food for Thought, a local bookstore located in the center of Amherst, has recently written a newsletter informing customers that due to insufficient funds, it will be closing by the end of 2013 after 37 years unless there is a drastic change in circumstance. The newsletter explains the main problem, which is the “financial debt incurred by the massive drop in textbook sales over the past couple of years.” Fewer books sit on the shelves because of a lack of money to invest in new stock. It states that there is still a chance for the store to remain open past the end of this year, but in order for that to happen, changes must be made. Grace Johnston, an owner of the store, said if they raise enough money in sales or donations, Food for Thought will stay open, but only at half its current size. They are looking to raise $38,000 and have received $8,821 in donations through an indiegogo account so far. The account launched on Nov. 16, 2013 and accepts $5, $25 and $50 donations. When someone chooses a $50 dollar donation, two former volunteers will match the contribution. The description box says these two former volunteers are willing to match the next $5,000 in donations $50 and above. The store has been advertising its events and donations through emails, which are seen by about 2,000 people through a mailing list, press releases, flyers Catherine Ferris can be reached at around town and Facebook. caferris@umass.edu.

News@DailyCollegian.com

Sing your heart out

Food for Thought could be closing Store struggles to raise funds in time

Serving the UMass community since 1890

BRYN ROTHSCHILD-SHEA/COLLEGIAN

The Wicked Pitch a capella concert on Saturday had a great turnout and included new hits such as “Wrecking Ball” and “I Don’t Care.”

PVTA organizes ‘Stuff the Bus’ Collection supports two local charities By shelBy ashline Collegian Staff

The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority’s annual “Stuff the Bus” food drive began this year on Nov. 18 and will continue through Monday. All PTVA buses contain donation bins for non-perishable food items, which will be given to help “food insecure community members,” according to a press release. All food collected on buses operating out of the PVTA’s garage at the University of Massachusetts will be donated to the

Amherst Survival Center. Food collected on buses from the Northampton and Springfield garages will be donated to the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts. The food drive was originally planned four years ago because the PVTA wanted “to do something to serve the community,” said PVTA Administrator Mary MacInnes. “The other part of it too is many of our riders are lowincome themselves, so it’s conceivable that our own riders will benefit from this program,” she added. Last year the PVTA collected around 2,000 pounds of food during the campaign and MacInnes hopes to top that number this year.

“[The campaign has] been very successful in the past,” said MacInnes. “And [the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts] where we deliver the goods for the southern area and the Amherst Survival Center up north are always very appreciative of the donation.” The area within which the PVTA operates includes 44 bus routes within 24 communities. This includes anywhere between Sunderland in the north and the Connecticut border in the south, as well as between Westfield in the west and Ware in the east. Food donations come from within these 24 communities. Donations are also accepted at the PVTA terminals

in Springfield and Holyoke, as well as at the customer service office and the administration office, both located in Springfield. According to MacInnes, the PVTA has conducted other drives in the past aside from the “Stuff the Bus” campaign, such as a winter coat drive, though they are not necessarily held annually. “We also work with the United Way at the beginning of the school year for donating school supplies,” she added. MacInnes said the PVTA will definitely continue to hold the “Stuff the Bus” campaign in future years. Shelby Ashline can be reached at sashline@umass.edu.

Honors students express mixed views on Roots Café Many want to use regular meal swipes This article is part three in a series addressing student reactions to the Commonwealth Honors Complex. By JaClyn Bryson

T

JACLYN BRYSON/COLLEGIAN

Even with 24/7 services, Roots Café remains quiet at some hours, like 6 a.m. on a Sunday.

Collegian Staff

he newly built Roots Café located in the center of the Commonwealth Honors College Residential Community (CHCRC) has attracted students with the promise of fresh salads, brick-oven baked pizzas and hot sandwiches. “[I eat there] probably at least once a week,” said freshman Tyler Russell. “I like the convenience that Roots provides. It’s a lot easier than walking over

to Hampshire or anywhere else.” While some students are fond of the café, there are others who think it’s not entirely convenient. One inconvenience is the fact that aside from grab and go offered for breakfast, regular meal swipes are not accepted at Roots Café. “That’s the problem. I don’t want to spend money so I’m kind of forced into using most of my meal swipes at Berk and Hampshire,” said Russell, who has used all of his YCMPs this semester at Roots Café already. “It would be nice if they took regular swipes, because we only have so many YCMPs,” added freshman Julia Amodeo. Some students add that the café doesn’t have enough space or resources to serve students for lunch and dinner with regular meal

swipes. “If they did that it might be too busy,” added Russell. “I don’t know if they are built for that capacity really.” “I’m not severely bothered because I know it’s not a dining hall, it’s not built that way. But it would kind of be nice if maybe on the weekends they took meal swipes,” said freshman Katie Hill. “It’s understandable but it’s kind of inconvenient.” Many students added that despite having the centrally located café nearby, the traffic to Berkshire Dining Commons and Hampshire Dining Commons is usually unmanageable, since they serve students in both the Southwest dorms and CHCRC. “We try to go early, so that it’s not crowded,” said freshsee

ROOTS on page 2


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