On November 6, the Mobile Food Pantry hosted by the University of Idaho Center for Volunteerism and Social Action in partnership with the Idaho Food Bank provided food for around 168 people.
Ingrid Garcia, UI first year student and Vandal Food Pantry Coordinator, said the number was derived from the 75 people who visited the pantry on Nov. 6, the number of people in their household and the number of people who couldn’t make it to the pantry that were given food by those who could visit.
“This year we started the Mobile Food Pantry because we wanted to start something (to provide) like fresh fruits and produce,” Garcia said. “That’s our goal, to have a bigger location for fresh produce, not just non-perishable items because we know that a lot of students and faculty members need help.”
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Those who helped hand out food on November 6 include members of the Center for Volunteerism and Social Action, UI students and UI alumni.
When asked about the experience of giving out food to those in need, Garcia described an interaction with a grandmother and her granddaughter.
“She (the grandmother) was really glad that we were there, she was like ‘oh thank you guys (for) being here, this really helps. You don’t know how hard it is when you don’t have a full-time job,’” Garcia said.
The Center for Volunteerism and Social Action will have other opportunities for those in need to visit the Mobile Food Pantry on the first and third Wednesday of each month.
Garcia said holding the Mobile Food Pantry twice a month is their goal, but with winter coming up this might not happen. Garcia said they need an indoor location in the wintertime in order to operate the Mobile Food Pantry to the best of their ability.
Garcia said they are in contact with different facilities to house the Mobile Food Pantry during the winter. But for now, the location of the Mobile Food Pantry will still be behind the UI Recreation Center in Lot 108.
Nicole Hindberg | Argonaut
The Vandal Food Pantry has eight cabinets across the UI campus.
- Student Support Services (Idaho Student Union Building, Room 306)
- Outside the Student Media offices (third floor of the Pitman Center)
- Diversity Center (Teaching and Learning Center, Room 224)
- Women’s Center (Memorial Gym 109)
- The Counseling and Testing Center (Mary E. Forney Hall)
- Student Recreation Center (main foyer)
- Native American Student Center (865 W. Seventh St.)
- Library Map Room (Library, Room 105).
The next Mobile Food Pantry will be on Wednesday, Dec. 4 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. There will still be a Mobile Food Pantry during UI’s finals week on Wednesday, Dec. 18 from 11:30 a.m. to 2 p.m.
The Mobile Food Pantry and the Vandal Food Pantry are open to all.
Those who wish to volunteer at either event can arrive at Lot 108 behind the UI Recreation Center at 11 a.m. on the day they wish to volunteer.
Nicole Hindberg can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @HindbergNicole.