{"id":8190,"date":"2026-08-03T11:08:39","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T11:08:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=8190"},"modified":"2026-08-03T11:08:39","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T11:08:39","slug":"meet-will-grand-the-lsu-graduate-who-turned-discarded-fraternity-food-into-more-than-10000-meals-for-people-in-need","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/?p=8190","title":{"rendered":"Meet Will Grand, the LSU graduate who turned discarded fraternity food into more than 10,000 meals for people in need"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<div class=\"e9jwa\">\n<div class=\"vdo_embedd\">\n<div class=\"GfdvZ\">\n<section class=\"_bIDB  clearfix id-r-component leadmedia undefined undefined  E9tg9 \" style=\"top:0px\">\n<div class=\"_bIDB\" data-ua-type=\"1\" onclick=\"stpPgtnAndPrvntDefault(event)\">\n<div class=\"ypVvZ\">\n<div class=\"WGttI\"><img src=\"https:\/\/static.toiimg.com\/thumb\/msid-132826373,imgsize-56289,width-400,height-225,resizemode-4\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg\" alt=\"Meet Will Grand, the LSU graduate who turned discarded fraternity food into more than 10,000 meals for people in need\" title=\"Although Grand has graduated from LSU, he continues to help organise volunteers every week.\" decoding=\"async\" fetchpriority=\"high\"\/><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div class=\"Ta7d_ img_cptn\"><span title=\"Although Grand has graduated from LSU, he continues to help organise volunteers every week.\">Although Grand has graduated from LSU, he continues to help organise volunteers every week.<\/span><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<p>A former Louisiana State University (LSU) student, started a community effort after noticing that large amounts of perfectly good food were being thrown away after meals on campus.<!-- --> His student-run organisation, Giving Greek, has now donated more than 10,000 meals to Baton Rouge&#8217;s St Vincent de Paul homeless shelter.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"3\"\/>Last week, Grand was recognised by US Senator Bill Cassidy for turning food that would have been thrown away into meals for people in need. Cassidy chose Grand for his July 2026 Local Spotlight, a monthly recognition programme that highlights people whose work according to him reflects &#8216;Louisiana&#8217;s values of humility, respect, and resiliency&#8217;.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"7\"\/>According to an official statement released by Cassidy&#8217;s office, Grand&#8217;s work showed how one person&#8217;s initiative could make a difference for thousands of people in the community.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"9\"\/>Grand&#8217;s efforts began with a simple observation during his time as a junior at LSU. That observation later led to the creation of Giving Greek, a student-run organisation that has donated more than 10,000 meals to Baton Rouge&#8217;s St Vincent de Paul homeless shelter.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"12\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Beginning of Giving Greek<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"14\"\/>Grand often stayed until the end of dinner while studying at LSU. Because he was usually among the last students eating, he regularly watched trays of untouched food being thrown away after meals.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"16\"\/>Instead of accepting the waste, Grand wondered whether the food could be used to help people who needed it.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"18\"\/>Grand contacted St.Vincent de Paul in Baton Rouge to ask whether the shelter would accept food donations. The shelter agreed to the idea. <!-- -->That decision marked the beginning of what would later become Giving Greek.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"22\"\/>Grand&#8217;s first visit to the shelter became a turning point in his journey. When he arrived with the food, a man approached his car and began counting coins from his pocket to pay for a meal. Will told him the meal was free.The man then asked whether he could take another plate for a friend who had also not eaten in days.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"24\"\/>That moment changed everything. It was a reminder that what seemed like leftovers to one person could be a lifeline to another. <!-- -->The experience strengthened Grand&#8217;s commitment to reducing food waste while helping people facing hunger.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"28\"\/><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"30\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>More students join<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"32\"\/>What started with one food donation gradually developed into Giving Greek, an organisation that brings together fraternities and sororities across LSU&#8217;s campus.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"34\"\/>Giving Greek has now donated more than 10,000 meals to the Baton Rouge shelter. The organisation&#8217;s work has also expanded beyond food donations.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"37\"\/>Its volunteers have organised Christmas toy drives for children, distributed blankets during periods of freezing weather and continued looking for new ways to support local communities.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"39\"\/>During his work with Giving Greek, Grand says one thing surprised him. &#8220;It wasn&#8217;t how many were in need of help. It was how many wanted to help,&#8221; he says.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"42\"\/><\/p>\n<p><h2>Giving Greek continues to grow<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n<p><span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"44\"\/>Although Grand has graduated from LSU, he continues to help organise volunteers every week.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"47\"\/>At the same time, he has handed over the leadership of Giving Greek to younger students so that the organisation can continue operating on campus.<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"49\"\/>Grand hopes the programme will continue growing at LSU and eventually expand to universities across the Southeastern Conference (SEC).<span class=\"id-r-component br\" data-pos=\"51\"\/>Grand is now pursuing a career in dentistry while continuing his commitment to community service.<\/div>\n<p><br \/>\n<br \/><a href=\"https:\/\/timesofindia.indiatimes.com\/world\/us\/meet-will-grand-the-lsu-graduate-who-turned-discarded-fraternity-food-into-more-than-10000-meals-for-people-in-need\/articleshow\/132825411.cms\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Source link <\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Although Grand has graduated from LSU, he continues to help organise volunteers every week. A former Louisiana State University (LSU) student, started a community effort after noticing that large amounts of perfectly good food were being thrown away after meals on campus. His student-run organisation, Giving Greek, has now donated more than 10,000 meals to [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8191,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[31],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-8190","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-31"],"magazineBlocksPostFeaturedMedia":{"thumbnail":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","medium_large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","1536x1536":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","2048x2048":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-small":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-small-tall":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-small-square":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-small-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-medium":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-medium-masonry":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-large":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg","blogsy-wide":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg"},"magazineBlocksPostAuthor":{"name":"admin","avatar":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g"},"magazineBlocksPostCommentsNumber":"0","magazineBlocksPostExcerpt":"Although Grand has graduated from LSU, he continues to help organise volunteers every week. A former Louisiana State University (LSU) student, started a community effort after noticing that large amounts of perfectly good food were being thrown away after meals on campus. His student-run organisation, Giving Greek, has now donated more than 10,000 meals to [&hellip;]","magazineBlocksPostCategories":["\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36"],"magazineBlocksPostViewCount":1,"magazineBlocksPostReadTime":3,"magazine_blocks_featured_image_url":{"full":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg",400,225,false],"medium":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg",300,169,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/although-grand-has-graduated-from-lsu-he-continues-to-help-organise-volunteers-every-week.jpg",150,84,false]},"magazine_blocks_author":{"display_name":"admin","author_link":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/author\/admin"},"magazine_blocks_comment":0,"magazine_blocks_author_image":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/8709732a479614e7a8aa24d3eb1b239f30dc6d90c61464ed495001e7a469d856?s=96&d=mm&r=g","magazine_blocks_category":"<a href=\"#\" class=\"category-link category-link-31\">\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36 \u0b2c\u0b3f\u0b26\u0b47\u0b36<\/a>","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8190","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=8190"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8190\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/8191"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=8190"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=8190"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/koshalsambada.in\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=8190"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}