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| The DSU's Kayla Kurin: 鈥淚t鈥檚 not embarrassing to need it ... We鈥檙e all students and we all struggle with money. And we all need to eat.鈥澛�(Bruce Bottomley Photo) |
It鈥檚 December and the height of exam period. Your student loan cheque isn鈥檛 coming for another month and you just ran out of your last box of Kraft Dinner. So what do you do?
Fortunately, the H漫画 Student Union has a solution. They have been running a food bank out of the Health Plan office in the basement of the Student Union Building for the past few years, and it鈥檚 open to all H漫画 students to use whenever they need to.
The system is entirely self-serve. Students bring a shopping bag, sign in with their B00 numbers, and are free to grab whatever they need. The food bank encourages users to limit what they take to one reusable shopping bag or two shopping bags every two weeks, but understand that everyone鈥檚 needs are different and some may need to take more on occasion.
鈥淲e just ask everyone to remember that there are lots of people who need to use it,鈥�? explains Kayla Kurin, the DSU's vice president internal.
Donations welcome
The bank is primarily stocked by Feed Nova Scotia, which drops off a shipment every Thursday. However, donations from students, staff, and faculty are always welcome. There is donation box located at the info desk in the SUB, or else students can drop off donations at the Health Plan office. Any non-perishable items are welcome, but since the food bank doesn鈥檛 get to choose what they get from Feed Nova Scotia, there is a particular need for things like baking ingredients and healthier foods. They also accept toiletry items.
Students should not feel self-conscious about using the food bank, says Ms. Kurin, admitting that there is still a slight stigma surrounding it. 鈥淚t鈥檚 not embarrassing to need it,鈥� she says. 鈥淲e鈥檙e all students and we all struggle with money. And we all need to eat.鈥�
Part of the DSU philosophy is to enhance the student experience, which isn鈥檛 possible if students are hungry, says Ms. Kurin. 鈥淚f you don鈥檛 have money to eat you can鈥檛 do well in your classes,鈥� she adds.
The food bank is open during the school year from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday, and until 7:30 p.m. on Tuesdays. It will shut down from December 21st until January 4th to coincide with the closure of the Student Union Building.
Ms. Kurin recommends anyone who needs food and supplies during that period to go directly to Feed Nova Scotia.