Luther swim teams contribute to Food Pantry

The Luther College swimming and diving teams will official kick off their 2010-11 season on October 30th.  But the swimmers and divers have already been in action.

This fall, the Norse gave private swim lessons to boys and girls ages 4-12 years old. To help reduce the cost of these one-on-one sessions, kids were offered the opportunity to bring up to five non-perishable food items that would reduce the cost of the lessons by $5.  At the end of the two sessions, the Norse had collected trunk loads of food for the First Lutheran Food Pantry.  Said Luther swimming head coach Lance Huber, "We were excited to see how many of the boys and girls got involved knowing that they were going to help people in need. The amount of food collected was incredible."

The Norse swimmers followed that community project with a visit earlier this month to the flood ravaged town of Hammond, Minnesota to help remove mud and debris from victim's homes.  The swim team members spent the day shoveling mud and gutting houses, picking up tons of debris that literally covered all parts of the town.  "It was incredibly hard work," commented Huber.

Food Pantry Photo ID (l-r) Amelia Ladd (So., Mitchell, S.D.), Stephanie Drewes (West Union, Iowa - swam for Decorah HS), Kelly Schneider (East Dubuque, Ill.) and Carol Flaskerud from First Lutheran Food Pantry