In order to help fight off hunger throughout Arizona, UA4Food will host its annual UA Faculty & Staff Drive, which kicks off today and ends April 1. Fifteen percent of people living in Arizona struggle with hunger, according to the UA4Food website. UA4Food hopes to beat last year’s earnings of 22,827 pounds of food and $23,623.32 in donations.

Drop-off locations for food and monetary donations can be found throughout the UA campus. The drop-off locations will be available on the UA4Food website later this week. UA4Food food drives have collected more than 171,827 pounds of food in the past from various events, with the highest amount accumulated from a single event being 35,984 pounds of food during the 2008-2009 school year.

For this event, UA4Food will partner with the Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona to raise and distribute food and money to those in need. The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona is a nonprofit corporation that started in 1976 and is approaching its 40th year of providing food for the hungry throughout Arizona. The Community Food Bank of Southern Arizona provides over 63,000 meals every day to those in need. 

“I love the fact that the food bank can take a dollar and make four meals out of it,” said Sheila McGinnis, the director of Outreach and Community Partnerships at the UA.

She emphasized that some of the most needed food for this event includes peanut butter, cereal, canned soups, canned meat and canned fruit.

“The food collected by the food bank is given to everyone, from the working poor, to the elderly, to children,” said Lou Medran, the Community Food Bank food drive and gleaning coordinator. 

Medran mentioned his own personal experience of losing his job a few years ago and the uncertainty it can bring. He explained how poverty and the inability to purchase food can happen to anyone at any time. Medran pointed out how food banks are often given more food during the holidays and how crucial it is to give back year-round.

“Helping out the community is important to me, because sometimes, there is nobody out there for them,” said Zach Prunty, a sophomore studying political science and psychology and a UA community relations assistant.

The UA4Food Faculty & Staff Drive ends on with the “Stuff the Cat Tran” event, where the UA community is able to fill a CatTran bus with canned and non-perishable items from 7 a.m.-6 p.m. Cash contributions are also accepted. The event is coordinated by UA Community Relations, the Staff Advisory Council, and Parking and Transportation Services. The bus will be at the north Cherry Avenue and University Boulevard drop-off zone.

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