Apples from SAI Farm and school supplies are the latest items to be added to the Cal U Cupboard.
Amanda Andrews, a senior secondary education major and Cal U Cupboard student staff member, picks fresh apples from the SAI Farm orchard.
The Cal U Cupboard — a resource for students who are experiencing food insecurity — has more items on its shelves for the fall semester.
- School supplies: The board of the directors of the Cal U Alumni Association has donated school supplies such as notebooks, pens, pencils, binders and highlighters to the Cupboard. The board plans to make support for the Cupboard an ongoing project by donating food, personal hygiene items and school supplies throughout the year.
To encourage student philanthropy, the Student Alumni Ambassadors collected more than 200 items for the Cal U Cupboard this past spring. A “Blaze in the Night Neon Fun Run/Walk,” sponsored by the ambassadors and the Office of Alumni Relations, will be held at 8 p.m. Friday, Sept. 21, as part of Family Weekend activities.
The entry fee for the event, which begins at 6:30 p.m. with registration at the Convocation Center, is a donation of two non-perishable food items, two personal hygiene items or two school items to be donated to the Cupboard.
- Apples from SAI Farm: In May 2016, 42 fruit trees — apples, cherries, peaches, pears and plums— were planted at SAI Farm, the upper-campus property owned and operated by the Student Association Inc. Two years later, some apples are ready to harvest. By year three, the apple trees will be fully grown, making fresh produce available to students at the Cal U Cupboard.
Dr. Sarah Meiss, a professor in the Department of Biological and Environmental Sciences, obtained the trees through a grant from the Fruit Tree Planting Foundation, a Pittsburgh-based organization that works to reduce food insecurity while promoting environmental education.
About the Cal U Cupboard
The Cupboard is located within the Center for Volunteer Programs and Service Learning, which is in the Natali Student Center, Room 119. In addition to school supplies, apples, and hygiene items, the Cupboard stocks canned food, microwavable meals, pasta, breakfast items and snacks.
Office hours are 8 a.m.-4 p.m. weekdays; the Cupboard is open 10 a.m.-2 p.m. weekdays. For information, call 724-938-4793 or email calucupboard@calu.edu.