The Student Food Pantry was built on the core belief that no student should have to deal with food insecurity or wonder where his or her next meal is coming from, which is why every Thursday from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. students from any local community college or university are invited to come to the garage of the Episcopal Campus Ministry and fill up a bag with food.
Approximately 90 students circulate through the SFP every Thursday to stock their shelves with nutritious food. The amount of students visiting the pantry at 1329 E. 19th Ave. has been increasing every week. A record-breaking 149 students were recorded at the pantry on the last Thursday of October.
When students come to SFP they can choose from canned fruits and vegetables, bread, rice, beans, soup and more. Students are just asked to bring their ID card and a bag of some kind for the food.
The SFP is a part of the Episcopal Campus Ministry and has been serving the student community since 2011. According to Chaplain Doug Hale who runs the SFP, the program was started by previous chaplain, Marisa Tabizon Thompson.
“A student connected to Episcopal Campus Ministry spoke with her,” Hale said. “She talked about a friend of hers who was not eating well.”
Hale said the conversation led to a discussion with staff at the health center and the opening of SFP during fall term of 2011.
SFP is run out of a single car garage, so with the continually rising number of students attending, overcrowding can be a cause for concern. Student Food Pantry spokeswoman Julia Hawkes said that fortunately that hasn’t been too much of an issue.
“They have a pretty good system for getting people in and out,” she said. “There’s a shopper that brings you through the pantry and is with you when you pick out the food.”
Hawkes also expressed the importance of the anonymity of the system. “They sometimes survey to see if a student has been there before, but they don’t record any of the names or anything like that.”
SPF representative Spencer Tyler said that one of the key goals of the pantry is to make sure that students don’t feel insecure about attending, and that the food is going to students who need it.
“They want to focus on students going there if they’re in need of food, and worried about where their next food source is coming from, not just taking advantage of the system they have in place,” Tyler said.
Hawkes and Tyler both said they don’t think there’s been an issue with students taking advantage of the system. Hale also expressed the importance of focusing on students who are most in need, as he stated that as one of the goals of the program.
“[The most rewarding aspect] is the human connection with students who need food, student volunteers, and students who are seeking to learn about the need and what is being done to address the need,” Hale said.