Mr. McFeely visits GVSU

Mr. McFeely of "Mister Rogers' Neighborhood" fame visited the Grand Valley State University Board of Trustees Meeting Monday to kick off a sweater drive.

All of Grand Valley’s trustees and President Thomas J. Haas donated sweaters to the Mister Rogers' Neighborhood Sweater Drive, which began October 27 and runs through December 5. The drive is part of a national campaign, inspired by the late Fred Rodgers, who was known for changing into a sweater and sneakers at the beginning of each show.

The drive will benefit several west Michigan organizations, including:

    *  In the Image (Grand Rapids)
    *  Allegan County United Way
    *  Community Action House (Holland)
    *  Charitable Union (Battle Creek)
    *  Kalamazoo Salvation Army
    *  Love, Inc. (Muskegon County)
    * Three Rivers Area Mentoring (TRAM)
    * St. Joseph County Homeless Shelter
    * Branch County United Way

"All of us, at some time or other, need help," said Fred Rogers, who died in 2003, "and whether we're giving or receiving a sweater, each one of us has something valuable to bring to this world. That's one of the things that connects us as neighbors — in our way, everyone is a giver and receiver."

Mister Rogers' Neighborhood airs on WGVU TV Sunday mornings at 9:30 and 10 a.m.

The drive is collecting new and gently used sweaters. For a list of drop-off locations, visit www.wgvu.org/sweaterdrive08 .