Two recent afternoons' worth of effort will send a nourishing ripple effect out of the heart of Radford University and across the city that surrounds it, putting hundreds of meals into the hands and bellies of local school kids. That was the result of the Radford Gives Back canned food drive, which recently marked its sixth year. About 150 university students took part in the event and, together on Oct. 27 and 28, brought 10,810 items of donated food into the Student Recreation and Wellness Center.

Private Ahava E. Heart of Silver Spring, Maryland, received special recognition from the Jewish Interest-Free Loan Association of Atlanta (JIFLA) as a winner of the "She's a Maccabee" Award. The annual Chanukah awards honor powerful Atlanta women who use their talents, passions and strong commitment to the Jewish community to help others. "Ahava embodies the tradition of the Jewish woman warrior! She is the direct third generation serving in the United States Armed Forces. She is enrolled in the U.S. Army Nursing ROTC program at Radford University in Virginia, with the career goal of serving as a U.S. army nurse. Continuing her family's Maccabean Jewish woman warrior tradition, with this exception - she will be saving lives instead of taking them," JIFLA wrote. For more information, go to the atlantajewishtimes.com.