Nov 17, 2011 - Claremont, Calif. -
Fifteen Harvey Mudd College students work with HMC Dining Services staff to ensure dining hall leftovers from the previous day’s menu are donated to Pomona Valley Christian Center, which ministers to the hungry and homeless.
About 20-25 food containers—each holding servings for about 20 people—are donated every week throughout the academic year.
“[The program] is a good way for students to make a real difference on a regular basis, but in a way that’s practical given their busy schedules,” said Julius Elinson ’13, MMAD treasurer and HMC’s Food Rescue program coordinator. “People can easily forget or simply ignore how much good one can do right in their neighborhood. When you have an impact on something nearby, it feels much more tangible and meaningful.”
In the spring of 2010, MMAD joined with volunteers from the other Claremont Colleges to participate in the Food Rescue program, which originated on the Pomona College campus. Five nights a week HMC student volunteers collect the food containers from Dining Services and wheel them by cart to awaiting vehicles driven by volunteers from Claremont-McKenna and Scripps Colleges. The drivers then transport the food to the church and return the empty containers to HMC.
Dining Services staff wash and sanitize the containers, fill them with leftovers, cool them to a safe temperature and place them on the cart for pickup.
“Our staff wants the food to benefit somebody and not be wasted. It only takes a few minutes of their time to do the work,” said Dining Services General Manager Miguel Ruvalcaba. “If it feeds even one person, it’s worth it, because that’s one person who’s not struggling.”
Media Contact: Judy Augsburger
judy_augsburger@hmc.edu
909.607.0713