Local Hotels Working with Feed Maroon Program to Provide Meals to Aggie Students
SAN ANTONIO (PRWEB) April 01, 2020 -- Two Valencia Hotel Group properties in Bryan College Station, The George and Cavalry Cour t, have partnered with Dorm Dish to help Aggie students in need of a meal.
Carlos Pernia, Director of Food and Beverage for The George and Cavalry Court hotels, said the idea for the Feed Maroon program sparked out of a simple conversation between himself, Brian Hall, founder of the nonprofit Friday Harbour, and Austin Fanning, founder of Dorm Dish.
After Brian Hall had spent a relaxing weekend poolside at Cavalry Court in College Station; he learned that students could be laid off as businesses started to shutter. Hall initially had the idea to feed 10 Texas A&M students for 10 days who had lost their jobs because of the Coronavirus, which soon escalated into the Feed Maroon program. Brian says “This goes to show that ‘ways to help’ are generally right in front of us and simply needs a catalysit and some partners to make it happen.”
“The need to help these students was identified, and in a short three days we all worked together to start feeding the students and raising funds,” Pernia said.
A GoFundMe was organized by Dorm Dish to help generate funds to provide these meals. Within a matter of days, the money began flowing in.
“We’ve had donations of all amounts, some enough to feed one student for a day, and others in upwards of thousands of dollars,” Fanning said. Fanning said the idea behind this is similar to “sponsoring an Aggie,” and has hopes that it will continue long after the pandemic ends. The program currently sits just $1,300 away from its goal of being able to feed all 30 students on their list for the rest of the semester.
“Right now, we have 30 students receiving meals each day, with another 60 on our waitlist,” Fanning said. “We want to be able to feed every student who is struggling financially, which is where all of these donations come into play.”
In this partnership with the two Valencia Hotel Group properties, The George and Cavalry Court, Dorm Dish agreed to provide microwavable dinners to the students, with Valencia Group’s catering service providing lunch. Meals are picked up at Cavalry Court’s on-site restaurant, The Canteen, from 11:30 am – 1:00 pm, Monday – Friday.
“Community is one of the most important aspects that Texas A&M has cultivated,” Pernia said. “The giving spirit of current and former Aggies is what has allowed this program to succeed, and by us being able to extend a hand to these students cements that spirit of community. We know that as Aggies, we can make a difference to the current students, and they in part will rise up to meet the needs of future classes when they are able to.”
Through the Feed Maroon program, Fanning has not only been able to help feed students in need, but has also been able to share the program’s prosperity with the community and the two hotels.
“To know that you are helping put food on the table for a student in need until they can get back to work or go back home to their families is such a great feeling,” Fanning said. “This entire program is a joint community effort. Once this is all over, we hope to have people come back and stay at The George and Cavalry Court as a ‘thank you’ for their help during all of this.”
Monetary donations will be accepted via GoFundMe through April 28th. If you’re an Aggie student in need of a meal, email [email protected] to apply to be put on the list.
About Valencia Hotel Group
Houston-based Valencia Hotel Group is a fully integrated hospitality company that provides management, development, branding and repositioning services for independent, full-service hotels owned by the company, in addition to third parties. Exceptional service, style and location have become brand trademarks. Earning both national and international recognition for their distinctive designs, amenities and settings, Valencia Hotel Group properties are destinations and gathering places within their respective communities, some further benefitting from and enriching their space within the cultural heart of a city. The company continues to forge a niche with hotels that anchor and add value to urban, mixed-use environments, which further support or enhance the guest experience with superior residential, restaurant, retail and office components. The Valencia Hotel Group portfolio currently includes the Valencia brands: Hotel Valencia Santana Row in San Jose, CA and Hotel Valencia Riverwalk in San Antonio, TX. In partnership with developer, Midway, include Valencia Hotel Group’s The George™ in College Station, TX and Hotel Alessandra in Houston, TX. The Court concept brands include Lone Star Court in Austin, TX, Cavalry Court in College Station, TX, Texican Court in Irving, TX and coming soon Cotton Court in Lubbock, TX. For more information, please visit http://www.valenciahotelgroup.com
To stay up-to-date with what’s happening in Bryan College Station, visit experiencebcs.com and follow along on social media @ExperienceBCS on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
Amy Trench, Valencia Hotel Group, http://www.valenciahotelgroup.com, 2102184018, [email protected]
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