Related story: Toy drive starts Dec. 17 at UC Davis Health System

By Cody Kitaura

UC Davis employees and students are the lifeblood of a long-standing program to provide food and gifts for needy Davis families each holiday season, and 2015 was no exception.

Twenty-eight departments, units and organizations “adopted” families through the Short-Term Emergency Aid Committee, or STEAC, which this year helped nearly 400 families who qualify for the nonprofit’s aid.

“This program, I don’t think could go without the university’s involvement,” longtime volunteer Lynne Rumery said. The UC Davis affiliates are “cheerful participants” who often adopt much larger families than individuals can, she said.

She said volunteers at STEAC are “touched by the kindness and generosity of the community there at UC Davis.”

For some, it’s just a natural next step from the work they do every day.

“We work here because we’re people who very much want to impact the lives of others and this is an extension of that,” said Nefretiri Cooley-Broughton, executive director of Student Affairs Marketing and Communications.

All 10 people in that department — along with one former coworker who now works elsewhere on campus — pitched in for the seven-person family they adopted.

“Everyone is so generous with their time and resources,” senior designer Jenn Vaughn said. “They don’t just do the bare minimum.”

Communications specialist Justin Ling said he tries to teach his children to be generous, so it only makes sense that he would donate to STEAC.

The Student Affairs Marketing and Communications donations — along with all the rest — were dropped off last week and picked up by the families over the weekend.

The departments, units and organizations that adopted families this year are:

• Safety Services
• Student Health and Counseling Services
• Department of Plant Sciences
• School of Veterinary Medicine Dean’s Office
• UC Davis MIND Institute Infant Sibling Study
• Undergraduate Admissions
• Design and Construction Management
• Metro Cluster
• Accounting and Financial Services
• Department of Environmental Toxicology
• Office of the University Registrar
• Office of Research
• UC Davis Police Department
• Staff Development and Professional Services
• UC Davis Extension
• UC Davis Fire Department
• University Library
• Office of the Chancellor and Provost
• Biology Academic Success Center
• Strategic Communications
• Department of Chemistry
• University Writing Program
• Delta Chi chapter of Delta Gamma
• Shared Services Center
• Biomedical Engineering Student Association
• Student Affairs Marketing and Communications
• Department of Viticulture and Enology
• Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering

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