Holiday Food Drive Aims To Fill North Campus Food Pantry

Students and staff are working to stock items like canned tuna, canned beans, baby food and formula on the shelves of the North Campus Food Pantry in Room 3115 as well as soliciting donations from the College community.

Organizers have set Dec. 2 as the deadline to collect 5,000 cans of food throughout the campus to replenish the food pantry for the upcoming holidays. Staff from the North Campus food pantry and Single Stop have worked together like in previous years to achieve the goal.

“This is an ongoing need,” said Sarah Garman, a humanities professor and United Faculty of Miami Dade College union vice president for North Campus. “It’s a constant struggle to maintain the food pantry but with the help of students helping students, many donations are coming through.”

Students who demonstrate financial need are eligible to receive items from the food pantry through Single Stop screening. 

Donations are a big part of the pantry, which relies on the help of both students and faculty.  Items such as pasta, rice, water and canned foods are being collected at different drop-off sites at North Campus. There are drop off sites at West Campus and at the Carrie P. Meek Entrepreneurial Education Center (MEEC) as well.

Student volunteers organize the stock, distribute and transport the food. Volunteers also help spread the news about the food pantry by word of mouth and banners. Students who volunteer can do so through service learning at the Single Stop department. Jobs include conducting inventory, verifying expiration dates and checking if items are dented.

“We were running low on donations last week, but with the cooperation of students and faculty we are beginning to fill in the shelves,” said Nathaniel Gomez, program coordinator at Single Stop.

Organizers are holding a raffle for a Kindle Fire to spur on donations. For every five cans donated, one raffle slip is given out. Some classes are acknowledging a five-can donation as extra credit. For more information about volunteering and donating, visit Single Stop. The Food Pantry is also looking for student clubs to adopt the pantry as their service project to help with fundraising, donations and expansion of services.

The pantry will expand to include toiletries and hygiene products next semester. Food Pantry Distribution days are on Tuesdays from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and Fridays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. For more information or to set up a Food Pantry screening, call 305-237-1444 or visit Room 1119B