Food insecurity is an issue that is currently facing millions as financial hardship has affected the ability of households to afford essentials. The NMU Food Pantry provides food and at-home essentials free to all NMU students, faculty and staff. The service offers a judgment-free environment to assist the university community members that may be facing food insecurity caused by financial uncertainty.
Students in need can visit the NMU Food Pantry located on campus in 101B Gries Hall, directly above the NMU Health Center to pick up shelf-stable foods as well as personal care items. The items available at the pantry are provided through donations and support from the community. Fresh vegetables are also available from the pantry’s community garden which is now in its third year of operation.
The NMU Food Pantry began its operations in the fall of 2017 and has continued providing its services for the community since. The pantry receives most of its funding through donations to the NMU Foundation and supplemental food is provided by food drives that occur throughout the academic year. Members of the community can make monetary donations to the pantry here and physical donations can be dropped off at the Dean of Students Office.
“Throughout the years we’ve been fortunate to work closely with the Student Leader Fellowship Program and have had interns each year who each provide 100 hours of community service to the pantry,” said Haley Rhoades, Assistant Dean of Students.
This summer, there will be two new interns working at the pantry, said Courtney Stone, one of the three student interns who worked for the food pantry over the last semester.
“The other two interns (Hannah Jaworski and Tyler Davis) and I worked hard to rebrand and spread knowledge of the pantry,” said Stone. “In the fall semester, we partnered with the NMU Hoop House to provide fresh veggies, participated in the drive through trick-or-treat event to receive donations, welcomed many donations of fresh bread and Trenary Toast from the Trenary Home Bakery and implemented the Share Your Dining Dollars event, among other things.”
The Share Your Dining Dollars Event involved a partnership between the pantry and NMU Dining allowing students to share leftover dining dollars toward the pantry. Through this event, over $5,000 in dining dollars were received which allowed the pantry to buy special items such as brand-name cereal and beef jerky products not typically offered in the pantry, said Stone.
“In the upcoming fall semester, we are hoping to get back to doing food drives, hosting volunteers to help keep the pantry stocked and organized, and making the Share Your Dining Dollars event a yearly program,” said Stone.
All current NMU community members are welcome to the food pantry and its services. Although the service is available to all students, faculty, and staff, it is used almost entirely by students, said Rhoades. The summer food pantry hours are Wednesdays from 3:00 p.m.-5:00 p.m. Shoppers may either submit online orders here: https://nmu.edu/dso/nmu-food-pantry or shop in person on Wednesdays.
“We want to thank the NMU and Marquette community for the outpouring of amazing support. Without the contributions, the food pantry would not be able to support so many individuals,” Rhoades said.
