Food on the Hill Spreads Self-Care and Positivity at ThoughtFUL Event

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Thinking about how great ThoughtFUL was last week! Guests were able to join us at Fulbright Dining Hall where they celebrated the power of joy through self-care, mindfulness, spreading positivity and togetherness! The energy and enthusiasm from guests and the amazing support from the campus partners brought so much joy to see.

For this event Chartwells partnered with The Jed Foundation (JED), a nonprofit that promotes mental health for young adults, giving them the skills and support they need to thrive today — and tomorrow. At various tables, alongside our campus partners, guests discovered an array of JED resources and practical tips, including dorm-friendly recipes, icebreakers for forging new friendships and more!

ThoughtFUL featured eight tables hosted by campus partners and the Chartwell's team, Food on the Hill, offering a variety of activities and freebies all centered around one of the 10 themes of ThoughtFUL. Each campus partner had an activity that aligned with one of these themes:

Theme 1: Nourish Your Body, Nourish Your Mind — Our chefs curated a climate-friendly menu promoting the climate friendly food at each station.

Theme 2: Make Time for Movement — Guests enjoyed JED resources and a rejuventating 30-minute yoga session hosted outside the dining hall by University Recreation Fitness.

Theme 3: Doing Good Feels Good — An encouragement wall where guests could partake in writing encouraging notes to their peers, JED resources guests could take, along with our CAPs partner who hosted a letters of kindness activity at their table.

Theme 4: Enjoy the Moment — JED resources guests could take, and the Multicultural Center provided coloring pages for guests to take and enjoy.

Theme 5: Connect With Old and New Friends — JED resources guests could take and JED conversation starters were placed at the table, and partnered with NRHH and Housing who had stationary, cards, colored pens, stickers, etc. for guests to decorate and give to friends and family they haven't reached out to in a while.

Theme 6: Sharing is Caring — ASG organized a meal swipe donation drive, fostering a spirit of generosity and community

Theme 7: Try New Things — JED resources guests could take and JED recipes for students to try in their dorms, and Food Recovery with the Volunteer Action Center promoted summer and next semester volunteer sign-ups and their Earth Day events, along with passing out freebies (stickers, shirts, etc.).

Theme 8: Hydrate and Smile — Coke provided us with samples of their new Coke Spiced drink!

Theme 9: Take Brain Breaks — The Chartwells campus dietitian and wellness team provided guests with green smoothie samples, promoting a healthy brain-boosting refreshment.

Theme 10: The Power of Joy — Our own Food on the Hill team took this theme and our activities included DIY flower bouquets, flower pot painting and a Polaroid photo booth.

It was an incredibly successful event as we got to help guests relax, enjoy delicious food and indulge in taking care of themselves and their health! None of this would have been possible without the support and participation of everyone involved. We loved seeing everyone there and are excited for next year's JoyFUL series events!