By Maggie Jennett
For the past five years a group of Iowa State University students have managed a food pantry for peers.
The pantry, which is known as The SHOP (Students Helping Our Peers), provides food and household items for students and staff on campus.
“The SHOP is important because there are a lot of people who are food insecure, which makes it difficult to study or do well as a student. No one deserves to be hungry and the SHOP helps prevent that,” says Tessa Anderson, a sophomore in culinary science and the SHOP secretary.
The mission of the SHOP is to help students in need. It serves approximately 60 to 90 students each month and has about 200 student volunteers.
This week students marked the anniversary with a campus-wide food drive, distributing promotional items and an open house. The SHOP receives donations from local churches, food pantries and student clubs on campus.
It is located at 2616 Food Sciences building and is open when class is in session on Tuesdays from 3-6 p.m., Wednesdays from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Thursdays from 3-6 p.m.
For more information about the SHOP visit their website. Support the SHOP by following on Facebook and Twitter (@ISU_SHOP).
Photo caption: Student volunteers setting up for an open house at the SHOP include sophomores Paige Ahlrichs, a software engineer major, Tessa Anderson, a culinary science major, and Claire Mollitor who is majoring in pre-business marketing.