North Hennepin Community College Sees Campus Food Shelf Visits Grow
A food drive at North Hennepin Community College Tuesday collected thousands of pounds of donations to help community members in need.
Called the “Thanks-a-Ton” drive, the goal was to collect 5,500 pounds of donations. At the end of the day, the drive collected 3,340 pounds.
During the drive, the college collected food, as well as hygiene items and household products.
The Brooklyn Park college’s food cupboard gets 1,200 visits a month from both students and community members alike.
North Hennepin Community College social worker Ellie McDowell said that food insecurity on campus continues to grow.
This year’s drive was an effort to engage the campus and community — both by receiving donations and reminding students the resource is there.
McDowell said as a social worker, she sees students struggle with the challenge of food insecurity. The “Thanks-a-Ton” drive gave the college a chance to address a vital need.
“Being able to be a part of that has been really great, too, so we can support our students through their academic careers,” McDowell said. “So that they don’t feel like they are making a choice between paying their bills, paying for food, feeding their children or going to school. We try to make it possible to do all those things.”
The food cupboard is entirely grant and donor-powered. Its available to both North Hennepin students and the community.
Donations to the food cupboard are always needed. One way to donate is through the college foundation’s Paypal.
More information about the food cupboard and how you can help fill its needs are available on NHCC’s website.
