Emily C. Kalberer
Contributing Writer
Being hungry is no joke. Unfortunately, according to Feeding America, it is the harsh reality for 47 million Americans and about 23 percent of college students.
Being hungry can affect your ability to focus, lead to anxiety and can even cause difficulty sleeping. This week, ESU will be hosting Hunger Awareness Week.
Hunger Awareness Week will take place from Sept. 22-29 and consists of many different events that raise and spread awareness about hunger. Its aim is to make students and anyone experiencing hunger feel less alone.
“I am really excited and looking forward to Hunger Awareness Week,” said sophomore Halley Roche, ESU psychology major. “I think it is great that we are spreading awareness for such a common cause. I feel like it gets swept under the rug and ignored a lot. Like, the kid sitting next to me could be starving, and I’d have no idea.”
To kick off the week, on Monday there will be Food Bingo from 5-6:30 p.m. in the Sycamore Lounge, with snacks and prizes for participants.
Taking place from Monday through Friday, students will be able to help curb hunger at ESU by donating the guest meal swipes from their meal plans to the Warrior Donation Meal Bank at Dansbury Commons.
On Thursday, there will be a poverty simulation at the Mattioli Rec Center from 2-4 p.m. This event is taking place to spread awareness and give students the opportunity to actually experience what it can be like to live in poverty and deal with the many challenges that come along with doing so. For more information, refer to an article about one of their previous events.
“I am definitely going to try to attend the poverty simulator,” Roche stated. “I think that it will be a good experience and will help me to have a lot more empathy for people going through something that I know nothing about. I think it’s certain that the world needs a lot more empathy. That’s for sure.”
The Warrior Food Pantry is an incredibly valuable resource that ESU students have at their fingertips. The Warrior Food Pantry is located at St. Matthew’s Church, 78 Ridgeway St., East Stroudsburg, PA 18301, Basement Entrance.
The Warrior Food Pantry is self-serve, and it allows for students to select their own products based upon what will work best for them. It is sustained by donations, and there are multiple places on campus for fellow students and staff members to help out.
Donation boxes are located in Stroud Hall, Sci-tech, Koehler Fieldhouse, Kemp Library, Monroe, Reibman and the Innovation Center. Non-perishable food items and toiletries are accepted to be donated to the Warrior Food Pantry.
Roche said, “I look forward to helping out other students in need. I didn’t even know that there were donation boxes all over campus. I think that this is a really great thing that the school is doing, and I’m so grateful to be able to be a part of such a wonderful community of people who want to help others.”