The king, queen and other members of Kent State University’s 2024 Homecoming Court will work with other Kent State students to help distribute food to Portage County families in need at a Pop-Up Pantry event on Sept. 25.
The Pop-Up Pantry will be set up at the Kent Central Gateway PARTA Bus Hub from 11 a.m.-1 p.m.
The event is a joint effort by the Kent Health Department, Kent State's Office of Community Engaged Learning and Division of Student Life. Joe Robinson, assistant director, Campus Connections and Traditions in Kent State's Division of Student Life told Kent State Today that his office helped to coordinate the Homecoming Court’s participation in the Pop-Up Pantry.
Kent State’s, foundational, institutional values of kindness, respect and purpose help to guide all Golden Flashes in finding ways to do what they can to contribute to the betterment of our community, locally and globally.
As part of the university’s Office of Community Engaged Learning, Flashes Fighting Hunger is a student-powered and volunteer-driven organization dedicated to reducing food waste and promoting food security.
The dedicated volunteers of Flashes Fighting Hunger utilize recovered food and shared kitchen space in the Tri-Towers residence hall complex to host multiple food distribution events on-campus each week. It also is able to prepare more than 250 nutritious meals for those struggling with food insecurity. In 2024, the organization’s pantry served 909 families.
Banner photo by Lisa Scalfaro, staff photographer, Record-Courier