Mason’s 10th annual Day of Service partners with the Patriot Pantry to address student food insecurity

Colleen Rich — Wed, 07 Sep 2022 19:24:17 +0000

Mason’s 10th annual Day of Service partners with the Patriot Pantry to address student food insecurity Colleen Rich Wed, 09/07/2022 - 15:24

��AV hosts the 10th annual 9/11 Day of Service this Friday, September 9, with a focus on food insecurity.

Participants can join in-person and virtual volunteer service projects throughout the day and attend special events including a morning meditation session at 9:30 a.m., a service fair at 11 a.m., and opening ceremonies at 11:30 a.m. in the Hub ballroom.

Mason’s Patriot Pantry, operated by the Student Support and Advocacy Center, is the featured partner.

The Patriot Pantry began in 2014 as a student-led pop-up shop to address student food insecurity. After years of successful operation, it was formalized and integrated into university operations in 2016. Housed in SUB I, Room 3011, the pantry is now the primary resource for students experiencing food insecurity.

You can support Mason students by purchasing food and hygiene products from the Patriot Pantry’s Amazon Wishlist, and adding “9-11 Day” to your order.

Food insecurity means someone lacks consistent access to the food they need to be active and healthy, due to a lack of financial resources, according to the USDA. Between 2018 and 2021, 36% of Mason students indicated they were food insecure, according to research as part of College of Science professor Dann Sklarew’s Environmental Science and Policy 480 Sustainability in Action courses.

Students can request food and hygiene products from the Patriot Pantry through an online order form and pick up their items at the pantry.

In the past four academic years, the number of unique students served by the Patriot Pantry grew by 362%. From the 2020-21 to the 2021-22 academic year, it grew by 90 percent, according to data provided by the Patriot Pantry. During the same year, the Patriot Pantry helped 453 student users and distributed 14,295 pounds of food and supplies (valued at $23,872.65).

Other volunteer opportunities include the Innovation Food Forest, Green Studio, Potomac Heights Vegetable Garden, a waste audit at a pilot compost site, as well as projects connected with Mason Chooses Kindness, the Fairfax Humane Society, and Women Giving Back. There’s also the option to participate in a virtual or in-person 5K: the Arlington Police, Fire, Sheriff and ECC 9/11 Memorial 5K Race.

Topics

Faculty and Staff News

9/11 Day of Service

Patriot Pantry

Greenhouse and Gardens program thriving despite COVID-19

Colleen Rich — Mon, 22 Feb 2021 14:54:11 +0000

Greenhouse and Gardens program thriving despite COVID-19 Colleen Rich Mon, 02/22/2021 - 09:54

Photo provided

When the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in March 2020, the order came down to get rid of all the plants in the Presidents Park Hydroponic Greenhouse on ��AV’s Fairfax Campus.

It was out of an abundance of caution, said Doni Nolan, the Greenhouse and Gardens program manager.

“We didn’t know what the risks were,” she said. “We were so terrified that if we tried to donate the greens, they might have COVID.”

Eleven months later, the vibe is completely different.

The Greenhouse and Gardens Program—which runs the Presidents Park Hydroponic Greenhouse, the Innovation Food Forest and the Potomac Heights Organic Vegetable Garden—is building off a successful fall semester that provided students with a hands-on learning experience, thanks to the diligent efforts of Nolan’s staff in creating safe spaces to work.

Nolan said the program, which had no known COVID-19 transmissions, saw about 100 volunteers—primarily students—complete about 500 shifts and put in about 1,000 hours of service during the fall 2020 semester.

She said 16 students have signed on as interns for the Spring 2021 semester, a record for the program.

“Students are still required to do hours, and they want to do hours in person,” Nolan said. “And they feel safe doing it with us.”

For Nolan; Hala Elbarmil, who coordinates the Innovation Food Forest; Alexa Hines, who coordinates the Potomac Heights Vegetable Garden; and Lynn Ruffa, who coordinates the Presidents Park Hydroponic Greenhouse, the must-do list to make their areas safe was extensive.

At the greenhouse, which already had a ventilation system, other equipment was removed to create space for social distancing. Doorknobs and faucets are sanitized, hand sanitizer is available, masks are required, and students are asked to sanitize their phones.

In the gardens, gloves are given to the students in a plastic bag. The gloves are theirs for the semester, no sharing. Tools are sanitized as are the pens on the sign-in clipboard.

A maximum of 10 people, including two staffers, are allowed in the greenhouse at one time, Nolan said, and up to 15 people, including staff, can be in the gardens.

The Presidents Park Hydroponic Greenhouse gives students a rare opportunity to participate in a sustainable farm-to-table operation as the fresh greens—basil, cilantro, lettuce and microgreens—and tomatoes are grown there and sold to Mason Dining. The money helps sustain the greenhouse.

The Innovation Food Forest teaches students about sustainable agricultural design, outdoor composting, and the importance of preserving natural, outdoor green spaces. Plus, whenever volunteers are hungry, they can forage for strawberries, paw-paws, and medicinal herbs, all of which grow naturally.

The Potomac Heights Organic Vegetable Garden is co-managed by the GMU Organic Gardening Association (GOGA). Students at this site learn about outdoor composting, maintaining garden beds and harvesting produce such as peaches, kiwi fruit and figs.

Make an impact at Mason today. Join hundreds of on-site and virtual volunteers by creating a free account on the Office of Sustainability’s Sustainable Sign Ups portal. Please remember masks and social distancing are required. Additionally, Mason students can participate in the Greenhouse and Gardens Academic Internship Program to earn course credit while gaining hands-on skills.

Topics

Campus News

Sustainability

on-campus greenhouse

coronavirus; COVID-19; Editorial

Students

Benjamin Auger

Mason’s 10th annual Day of Service partners with the Patriot Pantry to address student food insecurity

Topics

Greenhouse and Gardens program thriving despite COVID-19

Topics