The Corp and the Georgetown University Alumni and Student Federal Credit Union (GUASFCU) launched a partnership Oct. 18 to raise money for Georgetown University Mutual Aid (GU Mutual Aid) by selling matcha lattes.

During the event, Matcha for Mutual Aid, which took place from Oct. 18 to 22, GUASFCU, a student-run credit union, matched money made by sales of matcha latte drinks sold at various Corp locations. Ultimately, the partnership was able to raise over $1,000, according to Matt Davis (SFS ’22), CEO of The Corp.

The Corp chose to launch Matcha for Mutual Aid in order to help advocate on behalf of GU Mutual Aid, according to Davis.

“We know that we occupy a really special role in Georgetown because we do have legitimacy being in the form of a business, and we can use that to advocate on behalf of students and commit real change, specifically monetary incentives for student groups who don’t have the business element that we do,” Davis said in a Zoom interview with The Hoya. 

GUASFCU chose to partner with The Corp to support GU Mutual Aid and the broader Georgetown community, according to Victoria Smith (COL ’22), chief marketing officer of GUASFCU.

“The Corp is one of our Rewards partners at GUASFCU and being another club on campus we wanted to do something meaningful together. Both institutions offer unique services to students on campus and we wanted to do something that gave back to the whole community,” Smith wrote in a message to The Hoya. “Mutual Aid plays such a crucial role in supporting students on campus and we wanted to contribute to their efforts.”

The Corp tracked matcha sales through their point-of-sale system on their storefront iPads, which showed an increase in matchas sold, according to Davis.

The large amount of money donated to GU Mutual Aid represents the Georgetown community’s strong support for mutual aid, according to Davis.

“We totally surpassed $1,000 by the end of the week, so definitely an increase in orders,” Davis said. “It definitely doesn’t mean more people want matcha — it shows that students really want to give to Mutual Aid and recognize that this is one of the strongest things to come out of COVID.”

GU Mutual Aid is grateful to those who participated in the event, according to GU Mutual Aid Co-Founder Megan Huynh (NHS ’22). 

“Because we’ve been running low on funds, we’re really grateful for the Corp and GUASFCU for hosting Matcha for Mutual Aid, as well as everyone who bought matcha this past week to support us,” Huynh wrote in an email to The Hoya. “All the money will go directly back into supporting Georgetown students in need of funding for their basic needs like groceries and clothing.”

Since classes began this semester, GU Mutual Aid has received an influx of requests from students on campus. As a result, GU Mutual Aid has been forced to close its request form multiple times because of a lack of community donations.

In the past, when GU Mutual Aid closed its request form, student organizations on campus, including The Corp, launched initiatives to support donations to the organization. Last spring, The Corp and GU Mutual Aid collaborated to collect and distribute unused Flex dollars, which can be used at dining locations on campus, to help curb campus food insecurity. GUASFCU and The Corp originally agreed to host Matcha for Mutual Aid in February 2021, according to Davis. 

Supporting GU Mutual Aid is a cause that should continue to grow, according to Rosalind Tran (NHS ’22), who bought matcha during the event. 

“I thought that if my flex dollars were to go towards anything, Matcha for Mutual Aid would be a pretty good one,” Tran wrote in an email to The Hoya. “I would like to see support for GU Mutual Aid grow going forward.”

GUASFCU considers the initiative a success and hopes to collaborate with GU Mutual Aid in the future, according to Smith.

“Mutual Aid is such an important organization on campus and considering how well this fundraiser went I think there is a lot of potential to collaborate with them in the future,” Smith wrote. “We would love to work with Mutual Aid more and hear from them on how best we can help and learn more about how we can collectively contribute to the community.”

Collaborations between GU Mutual Aid and other campus organizations are powerful community-building tools, according to Huynh. 

“Collaborating with on-campus organizations is one of the best ways for us to build community with one another, while also spreading the mission of Georgetown Mutual Aid,” Huynh wrote.