Maverick Food Pantry up and running on campus
Providing food for students in need, the Minnesota State University, Mankato Maverick Food Pantry is now fully open as they encourage students to not shy away from asking for a little extra help.
Currently located in the Carkoski Commons, the food pantry is open three days a week on Monday from 11 a.m to 2 p.m., Wednesday from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., and Friday from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Launching in December of 2020 the Maverick Food Pantry is run by the Division of Diversity & Inclusion in partnership with Student Government and the Kearney Center for International Student Services.
Some items that are available include perishable and non-perishable food as well as toiletries for students such as shampoo, soap, and menstrual hygiene products.
As for donations, there are ways to donate food items and money to further help out by contacting the pantry at foodpantry@mnsu.edu or calling at 507-389-1557.
In order to receive items through the pantry, the process is pretty simple. Students will be directed to fill out a form of items they would want and then those responses are collected and analyzed to put together a box catered to their requests.
“I’ve always wanted to help people, especially when it comes to economic inequality. My hope for this food pantry is to help all students from all different backgrounds. I encourage them to ask for help even if that means they have a little extra spending money,” Carrlin Meier, graduate and assistant of the Maverick Food Pantry stated.
“One thing really important that we want students to know is that the more students we can help out and provide food for, the more funding and growth will go into this. We never want students to think they’re not eligible enough to come to us,” Meier continued.
Having partnered with Second Harvest, which is a food supplier through Walmart, the Maverick Food Pantry is able to pick out and purchase items in higher demand with the money donated.
Some items that are more popular include milk, eggs, fresh fruits, and vegetables. Items like these are more quick to expire than others, making them harder to obtain compared to other non-perishable items such as canned goods.
DeJuan Avant, freshman at MNSU said, “I think it’s great that they are offering this to all students because you never know what some people might be going through.”
The Maverick food pantry will be open during spring break three days a week with normal hours to continue providing their services to students who will be staying in the area.
Upcoming the food pantry is planning on partnering with Cub Foods next week as they plan to donate any extra items to the Maverick Food Pantry.
Looking toward the future the Maverick Food Pantry is just starting their mission and hope to expand and collaborate with other organizations soon.