Left to right, Phoebe Harris, education program director and coordinator of the RCC food pantry, SHOP student Amy Jacobs and RCC counselor Susan Moore show some of the food collected by the college.
SHOP student Amy Jacobs delivers 13 cases of Campbell Soup donated by Union Chapel Community Baptist Church.
LUMBERTON — Students helping other people, or SHOP for short, held a food drive in December to collect items for the food pantry at Robeson Community College.
“SHOP coordinated the food drive,” stated Susan Moore, a counselor at RCC. “ We had food donation boxes set up in seven different buildings on campus…we did have a great response.”
The food drive resulted in the collection of 3 full boxes of food and 13 cases of Campbells Soup donated by Union Chapel Community Baptist Church, which was delivered by SHOP student Amy Jacobs. Because of efforts by SHOP student ShaiQuita Jackson, Walmart donated 5 turkeys which were given to students in need so that they could enjoy a holiday meal to celebrate the season.
“A national survey in 2021 said that at least 17 percent of community college students are hungry,” Moore said. “So you know today the need is even greater. So, I thank everyone for the contributions they made for our students.”
The food pantry at Robeson Community College is open to students and efforts to keep the pantry stocked are ongoing.
“At times there are bare shelves in here too,” Moore said of the food pantry. “ We are continually trying to help our students… there is a big need.”
If you would like to make a donation to the food pantry, you can do so by donating to the RCC Foundation, designating your gift to the food pantry, or by dropping off any non-perishable food item to the pantry located in Building 8.
“Even though the food drive has ended, the need continues, and we want to be able to keep the food pantry open throughout the year,” Moore said. “Any gift of any amount will greatly assist our students.”
About the RCC Food Pantry
The pantry was started in 2017 by the late Debbie Lowery, an Early Childhood Instructor at RCC, after she witnessed one of her students digging through the trash to find food. Lowry later found out that the student was homeless. It was then Lowry approached the administration to see if she could establish a pantry in the vacant space in Building 8. The request was approved, and the food pantry has continued ever since. Lowery passed away in March of 2020.
