UF community members filled their Twitter timelines with pictures of turkey, mashed potatoes and pumpkin pie to raise money for the Field and Fork Pantry.
People could post a picture of their Thanksgiving plate using the hashtag #GatorPlate and share it on Twitter or Instagram, said UF spokesperson Steve Orlando. For every post, UF President Kent Fuchs volunteered to donate $1 of his own money to the Field and Fork Pantry.
Students from the College of Journalism and Communications’ Advanced Social Media class came up with the idea, Orlando said. The class asked Fuchs if he’d give a dollar per post, and he said yes.
“The overall sentiment is that Gator Nation is very thankful to have a president who cares,” Orlando said.
Fuchs offered to donate up to $10,000, but the exact amount is unknown as of Sunday night, Orlando said. Based on photos, the final bill adds up to about $1,075, he said.
The hashtag was used 773 times on Twitter and 302 times on Instagram, Orlando said. The total number of tweets and retweets was 1,486.
Michele Kuhn, a 22-year-old UF alumna, made sure her plate of mac and cheese and creamed corn wasn’t too messy for her photo. She said she hopes the hashtag will help people learn more about the pantry.
“It was a great event that I hope becomes a UF tradition,” she said.
Contact McKenna Beery at mbeery@alligator.org and follow her on Twitter at @mckennabeery
