Save A Lot partners with food pantry at University of Missouri-St. Louis
Donations to the Triton Pantry include a freezer and two refrigerators
Recent studies have shown that nearly half of all college students experience some level of food insecurity while studying on campuses across the U.S. More than one in five students surveyed at four-year institutions fell into the most severe category. The issue has been in the spotlight lately, including feature stories in The New York Times and NBC’s “Today Show”. At the University of Missouri-St. Louis, officials are taking steps to help students and other members of the university community who are in need of food and personal care items.
A new food pantry has been formally dedicated on the campus of the University of Missouri-St. Louis. Donors to the Triton Pantry, including St. Louis-based Save A Lot, were recognized for their assistance with the pantry and their gifts to the facility. Save A Lot donated an industrial-grade freezer, two refrigerators, and other items that will allow the pantry to expand its offerings and provide additional resources. Tony Botos, Save A Lot’s Vice President of Distribution, participated in the ribbon-cutting on behalf of the company.
“By partnering with organizations like the Triton Pantry, we believe we can make a significant impact in addressing the problem of food insecurity both in our own backyard as well as in the 1,200 communities where we operate stores,” Botos said. “I’m proud we could play a role in helping to fight hunger on the UMSL campus.”
“Honestly, the space would be empty, it would be shelves and red-and-gray walls, if it wasn’t for everybody here and all the people who can’t be here today,” Robin Kimberlin, UMSL’s Director of Student Social Services, told those attending the dedication ceremony.
The Triton Pantry is located on the first floor of UMSL’s Millennium Student Center. It’s open one day a month, with plans to extend to two days a month beginning this summer. UMSL says the pantry has served an average of 160-180 students and other campus community members each month.
The donations from Save A Lot, which operates 47 stores in the greater St. Louis area, are part of its commitment to give back to communities. Last year, the company donated more than 5 million pounds of food to local food banks and pantries and through Feeding America. In St. Louis alone, the company donated 830,000 pounds to the St. Louis Area Foodbank.
