Diaper Drive

We’re sponsoring a diaper drive and packing party this spring to help the Columbus Diaper Coalition. This organization helps struggling families with access to clean diapers. For more information on their mission, visit columbusdiapercoalition.org

The Columbus Diaper Coalition is in need of the following:

  • Newborn through size 7 diapers (biggest need: sizes 2, 5, and 6)
  • Pull-ups (any size)
  • Baby wipes (unopened)

They accept new or loose, open packs or sleeves of diapers.  

Feel free to bring your donation to our meetings in February and March. Karyn Johnson will collect and deliver them on the day of our packing party.  

Can’t attend a meeting? There are various donation sites throughout Columbus or donate via their Target or Amazon wish lists.  If you donate that way, just let us know so we can include your gift in our contribution totals. Email: OSUAlumniFranklinCounty@yahoo.com.

Packing party: We will deliver donations and stay to pack diaper bundles on Saturday, April 6 from 9:30 to 11:30 am at the Columbus Diaper Coalition.

The address is: 3840 Lacon Rd, Suite 12 (Enter at Suite 14), Hilliard, OH 43026. This is just off Cemetery Road. We will have lunch after the packing at either Scramblers or Rusty Bucket afterward. 

To sign up, please email Karyn Johnson at englanke@yahoo.com or call/text her at 614-822-1430. She will provide more details and a map just a few days prior to the event. 



SCARLET vs. GRAY FOOTBALL GAME: APRIL 13

What a better way to kick off Spring than to enjoy some Buckeye Football!!  The Scarlet vs. Gray spring football game will be on Saturday, April 13 this year. We’ll order a block of tickets, and we’ll host our traditional tailgate party!  Game time is currently listed at 12 Noon.

You can sign up for your tickets now!  For only $20 per person, this includes your game ticket AND all the food and beverages at the tailgate (rain or shine – we are “covered”), so bring the whole family!  There will be cheerleaders, the Best Damn Band in the Land, and of course Coach Day will lead the team in putting on a “Show in the ‘Shoe”!  After the departure of several players, who will be the new breakout stars?

You can order below, or you can send a check (made payable to Franklin County OSU Alumni) to Leyla Hawkins, 1149 Tillicum Drive, Worthington, OH 43085.  Please include your name, phone and email information when you order.  

How Many game Tickets and Tailgates?
How many tailgate ONLY?

DEADLINE TO ORDER:  FRIDAY APRIL 5.

POSTCARD PALOOZA! 

The OSU Office of Admissions is looking for people to assist with a postcard writing event on Tuesday night, March 19 at the Longaberger Alumni House. Our club is one of several alumni clubs participating. You’ll be writing notes to future students who have been accepted to OSU to start this coming Fall, to encourage them to accept and attend.. The event begins at 5:30 pm, and dinner will be served.


If you are able to assist with this project, please go to the event registration page set up by Admissions:

If you areable to assist with this project, please go to the event registration page set up by Admissions:

go.osu.edu/PostcardPalooza24

Click on the red Register button in the upper right corner of the page. Questions can be directed to Brittany Savko, 614-292-8031 or savko.7@osu.edu.

Beat the Winter Blahs with our annual BOOK CLUB!

After all the holiday excitement, sometimes January can be a bit dull. Too cold for outdoor events, so you’re stuck inside?  We have the cure: join our annual Book Club!

The Alumni Association encourages alumni groups to present educational and cultural activities, so we paired up with the Asian & Pacific Islanders OSU Alumni to present an educational event with a splash of fun at the end. We’re going to read the book, “I Belong Here: Living the Life I was Born For in America,” by Helen Yee, a local (Columbus) author, a memoir about growing up Chinese in America, mastering resistance to bullying and discovering her own destiny. (A full description is below.)

You can find this relatively inexpensive book on Amazon or at your nearest bookstore. We’ll aim to complete the reading by March, and then our alumni groups will join together for dinner to discuss. You’ll get to meet a whole new group of alums, enjoy a great meal, and learn from an interesting discussion. And since this author is local, she is planning to join us for our discussion and dinner!

Email us at OSUAlumniFranklinCounty@yahoo.com to let us know if you’re interested, and we’ll add you to the list to contact when we schedule the dinner. If we get enough people to join us for dinner, the Alumni Association might even cover the cost of the meal!  Questions?  Call Mary at 614-323-5379. 

Description:
I Belong Here – Living the Life I was Born For in America tells the story of one of the 4.5 million women who have been bullied with a gun, beginning with the night Helen Yee faces a masked gunman inside her car. Yee is no stranger to harassment. As a Chinese immigrant, bullying had plagued her formative years, but no longer does she passively accept it. Relying on years of martial arts training, she quickly forms a strategy based on the wise advice, “never go to a second location.”
Written with candor and aplomb, I Belong Here follows Yee’s journey from a cloistered Chinese childhood into mainstream 1960s midwestern America, navigating between dual cultures and revealing events that cause her to reimagine traditional concepts of family. Yee courageously pursues her own version of love and romance while training for the Olympic Taekwondo Team and discovers the destiny-changing power of massage and acupuncture and a future calling. In the current climate of Asian disdain, Yee’s unfathomable resilience and daring approach to personal and business challenges will inspire not only Asians, but cross over racial lines to those who feel beaten down by haters, bullies, and mockers. She offers a fresh vision to those seeking the hope of a brighter future. Optimistic and uplifting, I Belong Here encourages all readers to find their inner strength, identity, and the fullness of their destiny.

MEMBERSHIP APPRECIATION CELEBRATION June 22

Its time to celebrate YOU!

We want to welcome our new members to the club, and thank the members who have been long-time supporters!   Please plan to join us on Saturday, June 22 from 12 to 2 pm at the Longaberger Alumni House for a celebration of our members!.

We will have a variety of appetizers and beverages.  We will be indoors, but there is room to go outside if the weather cooperates.  If you want to dress up in your Buckeye gear, that is totally appropriate!  There will be photo opportunities with celebrity guests, games and prizes, and an opportunity to purchase unique Buckeye souvenirs to support our scholarship fund.Everyone is welcome to attend this event!  Come meet our leadership team, ask questions about the club, and see how much fun we are!  This is a family-friendly event, so feel free to bring yours!   

How Many Tickets?

Questions?  Call Leyla at 614-893-0559.

SEMI-ANNUAL WINE TASTING APRIL 3

Our fan-favorite event, the semi-annual Wine Tasting Dinner at the Wine Bistro on Lane Avenue will be held on Wednesday, April 3 at 6:30 pm. The chef is creating a special menu for us, to pair with a variety of wines. 

There is limited seating available, so get your reservation in early!  They will provide an amazing 4- course dinner, with wines paired to complement each serving. You’ll even be able to order bottles of the wines you enjoy right after dinner!

If you prefer to pay by check, make it payable to OSU Alumni Club of Franklin County, and mail it to:  Leyla Hawkins, 1149 Tillicum Drive, Worthington, OH 43085.

Plan to arrive by 6 pm so you have time to find parking, and to socialize before dinner. Parking is available behind the building (very limited), or on nearby streets, or also across the street in the Lane Ave Shopping Center. Questions? Call Mary at 614-323-5379 or email us at OSUAlumniFranklinCounty@yahoo.com.

SCHOLARSHIP CANDIDATE REVIEW

Get ready to join us for our most important task we do each year – reviewing scholarship applications to select our 2024 recipient!  In February our Scholarship Co-Chairs, Brad Farmer and Frank Stoy, will need 10-12 people to volunteer to review applications and rank the candidates. 

From a field of over 150 last year, we chose a handful of the best to interview, then selected a winner.  You will be so impressed with the quality of the candidates among these local high school seniors. The time commitment involved is approximately 2 weeks in mid-February.  You’ll be sent a list of applications, and will have a few weeks to review and “score” or rank the applicants, and a deadline to turn in your ranking list. To volunteer or if you have questions, please contact Brad at 614-371-5523 or BradFarmer21@gmail.com or Frank at 419-386-6511 or frankstoy1@gmail.com.

SPECIAL TOUR OF THE CARTOON MUSEUM!

Join us for a unique afternoon as we get a special tour of the Billy Ireland Cartoon Library and Museum, on our OSU Campus.  We’ll have our own tour guide, who will take us behind the scenes and show us special and unique items from their collection.  There is no cost for the museum, you only have to pay for parking.  

Help Us Help The Dream Center 

Here’s a different charitable collection program — this one takes place AFTER the holidays!

Organizations that help the less fortunate need assistance all year around, so we have chosen to assist The Dream Center this January and February with their mission to provide warmth and care for their homeless clients.  If you would like to learn more about the Dream Center, visit their website:  www.columbusdreamcenter.org.

We will collect items during all of January, with the goal of delivering our collection in February.  Here are some of the items that are most requested at the Dream Center this season:

  • Blankets (fairly heavy, and fairly long so that they cover someone completely)
  • Warm gloves
  • Ponchos
  • Socks (both regular socks and warmer socks)
  • Toilet paper
  • Deodorant (travel size or mini size)
  • Shampoo (travel size or mini size)
  • Laundry detergent
  • Tents
  • Alcohol Wipes / Sanitizing Wipes
  • Sleeping Bags
  • Baby Wipes

You are welcome to deliver your donation to any club meeting or event, between now and the end of January, or deliver directly to the home of our Community Service co-chair Ron Kenat.  Reach out to Ron to make alternative delivery plans, or if you have any questions:  614-420-2736 or Abelcom123@yahoo.com.

Thank you for helping us share our gifts with others in need!