Friday, January 13, 2023
River Falls food pantry, CVTC pair up to fight hunger
Each week when college students are on campus, Jen Sell, Chippewa Valley Technical College at River Falls campus manager, travels to the River Falls Community Food Pantry and picks up food for students in need. The items are located in the College’s Learning Center.
Candice Anderson realizes that she needs college students, and they need her.
As the executive director of the River Falls Community Food Pantry, she’s always looking for volunteers to help distribute much-needed food.
Chippewa Valley Technical College at River Falls and UW-River Falls students fit the bill.
“Every semester, we get a few students,” she said. “When people come and get food from us, they put together a shopping list – kind of like Instacart. We’ve needed a few more people recently to fill orders.”
Anderson said an influx of students each school year naturally comes with more need, therefore, she put together grab-and-go items that work well for college students in need.
Jen Sell, CVTC at River Falls campus manager, said she’s grateful Anderson is willing to help students too.
“On a regular basis, the River Falls Food Pantry prepares a complimentary box of snacks and shelf-stable food items for our students at the River Falls campus,” Sell said. “We have baskets with that food in our Learning Center for students to take as needed.”
Anderson considers it a win-win. Food is going to people who need it, and she’s getting volunteers as well. She doesn’t have an assistant, so if students are office-minded, she can train them as her assistant.
Being that Anderson is a 2015 business management graduate of CVTC, she knows the college students in town should not be forgotten.
“If they need food assistance they get it,” she said. “They don’t have to be a River Falls resident. They are part of the community, even if they don’t live here permanently.”
