It's Socktober in the Undergraduate Academic Affairs Office

Collecting socks in remembrance of Alice Watts

It's Socktober in the Undergraduate Academic Affairs Office

The college office of Undergraduate Academic Affairs needs socks, lots and lots of socks. We are one of many communities, locally and across the country, taking part in the 2016 effort, known as Socktober, to prove that even small acts of kindness, like donating socks, can make a big difference in the lives of our neighbors who are homeless. This year’s Socktober program serves to honor a beloved member of the Mason community, Alice Watts, who passed away in September.

Alice Watts was a long-serving and highly respected staff member in the College of Visual and Performing Arts. She was an alumna of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, having completed both a BA in philosophy and English in 1991, and an MA in English with a focus on dramatic literature in 1997 after becoming a member of the CVPA staff. She filled many different roles in her over 25 years as a staff member at Mason.  Her responsibilities continually grew and changed as the arts became an increasingly integral part of the university. Watts passed away on September 23, 2016 from pancreatic cancer. She was 65 years old.

The college is working jointly with CVPA to collect socks to support the Katherine Hanley Family Shelter in Fairfax, Virginia. The Katherine Hanley Family Shelter provides housing and support for homeless families in Fairfax County. Up to 20 families may reside at the shelter at any given time, mostly mothers and their school-aged children. The shelter provides a safe, temporary home and professional staff members who assess and support the needs of the entire family.

We will be collecting new pairs of socks during the last week of October. A member of the Undergraduate Academic Affairs office will be taking donations in the Johnson Center: on Monday, October 24 from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm at kiosk D, on Tuesday, October 25 from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm at kiosk C and on Wednesday, October 26 from 9:00 am to 11:00 am at kiosk A.  Members of the staff will then donate the socks to the Hanley Family Shelter in Alice Watts’ honor. 

Are you collecting socks for Socktober? In your dorm? As a department? With your student organization? Document your efforts and connect with Socktober events across the country on social media with the hashtag #socktober.