SE Connecticut News

UConn Avery Point celebrated the opening of its Husky Harvest food pantry on Wednesday,January 18th, one of four pantries to go online at each of UConn’s regional campuses.

“I’m excited and I can’t wait to see it get off the ground and in motion,” Avery Point Director of Campus Operations Janene Vandi says. “We’ve been in the planning stages for a while now, and I’m ready to take the next step. I really want to get the word out that this resource is here."

The effort is part of a University-wide initiative to address food insecurity through a partnership with Connecticut Foodshare and locate pantries at each of UConn’s regional campuses. Husky Harvest locations in Hartford and Waterbury still are in development, while the one in Stamford opened last semester following the success of a pop-up pantry in early 2022.

Vandi says she expects Avery Point’s undergraduate and graduate students especially - by virtue of who they are, how much they’re studying, and what they’re earning - to take advantage of the pantry once it opens. “We are opening modestly three or four times a week and see what the need is,” Vandi, who spearheaded Avery Point’s efforts, says. “We have a lot of first-generation students who are bound to our area and must work a lot of hours to bring money home to their families. We hear that families are struggling, and we do anticipate there will be a good numb er of student s who rely on the resources here.”

Dining services do es have a cafeteria on campus, Vandi notes, but “sometimes a $10 meal, five days a week stretches a person’ s budget.”  The Connecticut Foodshare partnership will provide items for people to take home and make a meal – think pasta and sauce, rice and beans, peanut butter and jelly.

Connecticut Foodshare CEO Jason Jakubowski and Board of Directors member Kayla Reasco attended in addition to several other Connecticut Foodshare staff, UConn Provost Anne D'Alleva and Representative Aundre Bumgardner.

“There’s a high number of people who go hungry on college campuses and it shouldn’t be as shocking as it is,” Jakubowski, a double UConn alum, says. “This population is paying for their education, has limited time to work, and might have other expenses like housing or medical bills. When you put those things together, you realize that unless you’re living on campus and have a meal plan, you’re likely to be struggling with food insecurity.”He adds, “We’re very excited about this and I’m very excited about this personally. To do this anywhere is always terrific, to do this at my alma mater is extra special.”

Contributions to the Regional Campus Food Insecurity Fund at the UConn Foundation to support Husky Harvest across all of the regional campuses can be made online.

Original source can be found here.