We caught up with Jenny Thomson, President of the Mary’s Meals Society to learn more about what they do and the exciting events they’ve got coming up.

Tell me what the Mary’s Meals Society is and what you get up to.

As the Mary’s Meals Society, we fundraise for Mary’s Meals, a Scottish charity feeding over 2.4 million children every day in their place of education. We sponsor a school in Malawi: this year we are aiming to feed 486 children for the year. That means fundraising £7,727.40! We host lots of fundraising events but also aim to provide opportunities for socials and opportunities for volunteering in a friendly, welcoming, environment.

What do students need to get involved with the Mary’s Meals Society?

Strath students can get a semester membership for £2.50 which goes to our fundraising and gets them discounts to events. They don’t need to be members to get involved though!

We have fortnightly meetings during term time, and everyone is welcome and we have a volunteer group chat for anyone who would like to volunteer at events sometime. Events are also open to all and are always advertised on the union website.

Why should students get involved with the society?

Everyone is super friendly and it can be a great space to meet new people. Fundraising and volunteering are really good ways to get to know people if you’re shy and find the typical going to the union for drinks awkward. 

Just by coming to our meetings and/or lending a helping hand at fundraisers are all volunteering for your union logs (and discount cards!) and your CV (we can also provide references with the official-ness of being a registered volunteer group with an international charity). Basically: you can have fun, meet new people, AND get valuable volunteering experience.

What are the most rewarding moments of being involved with the Mary’s Meals Society?

Fundraising is one of the most rewarding things ever because you can make a huge difference just with a few hours of your time. It’s also one of the best things specifically about Mary’s Meals- with it only costing £19.15 to feed a child for a year, you realise how far a little can go. Working together in a team to put together an event and seeing it all come together (sometimes after a lot of stress) is also so rewarding.

What plans are the society currently looking forward to?

We are going to be at a lot of balls this spring/summer doing raffles- this is one of our favourite things to do this year as we get to dress up, see everyone else all dressed up and help ball committees (who work SO hard!) make the night that little bit more special without extra stress by providing prizes and everything…all of that on top of fundraising!

The society is hosting a ceilidh in collaboration with the Cocktail and Mocktail Society to celebrate the end of the semester and the start of summer. Live music, ceilidh dancing, face glitter & temporary tattoos, all for charity... what more could you want? Get your tickets here for £4 and will go towards fundraising for the school Mary’s Meals has been sponsoring or 3 years. 

If you’re interested in getting involved with the Mary’s Meals society then reach out to them on Instagram and make sure to keep up to date on future events on their society page.