Over 90,000 Meals Provided
Food pantries on local community college campuses are about to get a big boost, just in time for the holidays. This year’s Pack the Pantry food drive set a new record, raising enough money to provide more than 90,000 meals for local students facing food insecurity. A big thank you goes to our members who supported this campaign raising over half of our total.
The annual Pack the Pantry food drive is organized by California Coast Credit Union, in partnership with the San Diego Food Bank and local community colleges. This year’s food drive was entirely virtual due to the pandemic and raised more than $18,000, which will provide a total of 90,600 meals for 10 local community college food pantries. Cal Coast members answered the call to action and continuously boosted our growing total throughout the campaign.
A recent study revealed that more than 50 percent of local community college students face food insecurity, meaning they don’t have consistent access to food.
“Food insecurity can have severe consequences for students,” said Dr. Pamela Luster, President of San Diego Mesa College. “It often results in students being late or missing classes, or having to drop out altogether. Thanks to Pack the Pantry, we’ll be able to keep our food pantries stocked, allowing students to focus on their education and not worry about where their next meal may come from.”
We are thrilled by the success of Pack the Pantry this year and so proud of the way everyone came together in these difficult times to help our local students. It says a lot about the strength and resilience that makes this such a great community. - Todd Lane, Cal Coast President & CEO
San Diego Magazine has also acknowledged the success of this year's Pack the Pantry.
Please visit your local community college website to learn more about how you can continue to help stock their food pantries throughout the year.
