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SCARBOROUGH — Hannaford Supermarkets has expanded its Fuel Kids at School pantry initiative to Maine’s community colleges with a donation of $35,000 to establish and expand pantries at all seven community college campuses. The donation will be used for startup and build out of pantry and storage spaces as well as food costs.
Central Maine Community College, in Auburn, received $5,000 — $3,000 for renovations and $2,000 to stock its pantry. Kennebec Valley Community College in Fairfield received $4,948 — $2,948 for renovations, refrigerators and freezers, and $2,000 to stock its pantry. Money also went to Northern Maine Community College, in Fort Kent; Easter Maine Community College, in Bangor; Washington County Community College, in Machias; Southern Maine Community College, in South Portland; and York County Community College, in York.
Based on recently research, system officials estimate that at least 40% of students enrolled at the colleges in the state’s community college system are food insecure.
“This generous donation not only helps keep these food pantries stocked, it provides for freezers and refrigerators that will allow these food pantries to provide a range of food options for years to come,” said Maine Community College System President David Daigler. “Our students can’t learn if they’re hungry. These food pantries, many of them student-run, are a critical resource for our students and their families.”
More than $15,000 of the donation will be used to stock food, with the remaining money going toward refrigerators, freezers and renovations at five of the campuses. The Colleges will work directly with Good Shepherd Food Bank in Auburn on preparatory and operational logistics, including food safety training and inspections and food purchases.
The donation is a part of Hannaford’s $1 million commitment to Fuel Kids at School pantry initiative launched in November 2019 to establish 90 school food pantries across the northeast, including 30 in Maine. Since then, all 30 school-based food pantries have been established at Head Start preschools across the state in partnership with Good Shepherd Food Bank.
