Amanda Smith
Lantern Staff
On both the El Dorado and Andover Butler campuses, there are food pantries available for Butler students and faculty to use, whether they live in the Villas, at home or on campus. Grizzly Ambassadors and Student Government Association (SGA) collaborate to make this possible on the El Dorado campus along with donations given for products.
Although Grizzly Ambassadors are the primary organization involved, the two groups are tightly woven since Grizzly Ambassadors had to move the pantry from the Library to the SGA room due to lack of space. The food pantry has been available for six years.
The pantry on the El Dorado campus, located in the student union, can be accessed by any Butler student. According to SGA President Christian Leis, students who wish to use the food pantry should coordinate a time with Student Involvement Manager Andrea Weiss and bring their student ID. If a student does not have their ID handy, students can write their name down and have their identification confirmed at a later time. Students at the Andover campus should contact Director of First Year Sherri Conard regarding the food pantry on its campus.
“We never turn a student, faculty or staff member away,” Weiss said. “We’re here to help! We also have a “coat closet” with warm clothes and a cabinet in the food pantry filled with toiletry items.”
Students can also contact Grizzly Ambassador members Chloe Cope or Gabriela Guzman to set up a time to get food bags. If students are unable to set up a time to pick up food bags, there are typically food bags prepared in the office and readily available.
“In years past, [the food pantry] was not advertised well, so we just had masses of food added up over the years,” Leis said. “There is fresh food in there to eat and it’s all organized and you get a good variety… whatever you need.”
Weiss estimates that 12-15 students currently utilize the food pantry a month and believes that the food pantry could provide up to 20 students with products per month. The products available for students range from canned vegetables to microwavable pasta.
“I’ve never used the pantry before, but I think it’s really cool that Butler offers that for students who may not have the resources to get their own food,” freshman education major Katie Schirmer said. “They’ve done a good job of advertising it, and I see a lot of flyers. I hope that more students begin to use it.”