Stockton Campus Food Pantry
Learn more about this amazing resource on our campus!
The Food Pantry (FP) on the Stockton Campus is an extremely valuable resource, particularly for the students who are facing food insecurity. The pantry is currently in the Food Resource Center (FRC) which is located in the Communications Building, Room 10, through the glass door by the Robb Garden. For the Fall Semester of 2023, the FP is currently open on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays from 11:00am to 4:00pm.
“The Food Pantry here is for students facing food insecurity. It’s not to feed them for every meal, it’s just to help make ends meet so they can have more energy concentrating on being a student,” says Jessica Bilecki, the Sustainability Director. However, the mission of the FRC and FP are about more than just food. It is “(a) part of that bigger picture lens of sustainability, of looking at environmental health, social and economic health, all interrelated.”
The FP does give food based on eligibility, not just anybody can take food. Food security status is a determining factor, which can vary based on demand. When demand is higher, the FP will be a little bit stricter about who they are able to allow to access food. But when demand isn’t quite as high, they are able to relax those standards a bit.
Not only is the FRC not an excellent resource for food, but also for learning. “We have lots of books and resources on sustainable food systems,” Bilecki says. “And part of that is how do we grow food in a more ecologically friendly manner, but also paying attention to what are the social issues around how our food is produced and around how we’re accessing food.” The FRC also welcomes students to come to the FRC to peruse those resources, or just to come and relax.
Donations are always welcome! The FP is always accepting donations. There are donation drives at different times of the year, but you are still welcome to donate at any time. There is a bin outside Duplicating Services and you can drop food off at the FP whenever it is open. They ask that the food donations be shelf-stable food that is not expired, still sealed, and in its original packaging. You can also make monetary donations via a link on their website.
Unfortunately, the Sacramento and San Francisco campuses do not yet have physical pantries, however they do have virtual food pantries.
For more information visit their website: https://www.pacific.edu/about/sustainability/food-pantry