Joseph Edgecomb / The Collegian

The women sit on the sunny porch off Shaw Avenue near campus for a few hours each Saturday, talking over coffee like friends do.

The porch doesn̢۪t belong to them. Neither does the coffee. Both are provided by the Bulldog Pantry, an emergency food pantry run by Fresno State student volunteers.

In an effort to create a community atmosphere, the students cook breakfast for their Saturday morning visitors.

“We try to do more than just give them food,â€Â Bulldog Pantry president Jessica Watkins said. “It gives them a way to get away from their crazy lives, just like us.â€Â

Since it opened its doors in November 2007, the pantry, which is sponsored by Lutheran Campus Ministries, has been open every Saturday from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. Students started the pantry in response to food needs in the El Dorado Park and Vineland Elementary School area.

According to statistics compiled by the pantry, March saw approximately 70 people per week coming to the facility.

More than 40 students volunteered for nearly 200 hours of work between last November and this March, but Watkins said it is difficult to recruit volunteers.

“No one wants to get up on a Saturday morning and come serve food to people,â€Â Watkins said.

Jocelyn Moreno said that she was volunteering to fulfill a class̢۪ community service requirement, but she hoped to return to the pantry in the fall.

“It’s good that students take time off to help others in need,â€Â she said. “We help a lot of families here, so that’s a benefit in itself.â€Â

Watkins also likes to help the families. According to Watkins, most of the people visiting the pantry are members of families, with the average family size between four and six people.

“We’re seeing a lot more families recently than we did before and I think it’s part of this whole economic crunch thing,â€Â Watkins said, adding that only three or four of their regular visitors are actually homeless.

A 2006 study by the Community Food Bank, a Fresno-based agency that supports 170 food distribution programs, found that only 4 percent of those who take advantage of services like the pantry̢۪s are homeless.

Watkins said 51 percent of those who benefit from the pantry are minors.

“You don’t think there are all these families that can’t buy groceries every week,â€Â she said. “As far as I see it, if you have the guts to come ask for food, we’re giving it to you.â€Â

The pantry spends about $200 a week on food, which it purchases and picks up from the Community Food Bank on Wednesday mornings. Packing meals into paper bags and boxes takes place Friday afternoons, and distribution occurs on Saturdays.

Moreno said workers try to make meals well-rounded and sometimes include snacks as well.

“We try to pack whatever we have a lot of, but we try to have a lot of variety,â€Â she said.

Sometimes food is donated. Vons donates different kinds of bread, which visitors may choose from. Twice a year, at the end of the fall and spring semesters, Fresno State̢۪s Residence Dining Hall donates all of its perishables to the pantry.

The dining hall̢۪s fall donation comes just in time for the holidays.

“We had all of this tile area stacked with boxes last year,â€Â Watkins said, gesturing to the worn laminate tile that covers one third of the pantry’s main room. “One lady hugged me and told me it was the best Christmas she’d had in a while.â€Â

The most recent donations to the pantry came from a Fresno State̢۪s culinology class̢۪ Come Eat Our Homework fundraiser held over the weekend. Net proceeds from the six-course dinner and silent auction went to the pantry.

“We though this event would be a great way to give back to the community and fulfill a class requirement at the same time,â€Â said Kelly Miller, a student in the class.

According to Watkins, the Bulldog Pantry is somewhat unusual because it lets the same people receive food every week.

“Most food pantries only allow people to come once a month,â€Â she said. “We are one of the only food pantries [in the area] to be open every single Saturday and to allow people to come in every single week.â€Â

I think this is something that could stay open for a really long time if we have the manpower,â€Â Watkins said, “and I think it’s something Fresno needs.â€Â

Helping the pantry
Here are some ways to help the Bulldog Pantry besides volunteering:

̢ۢ Students can donate canned or non-perishable food to the pantry by dropping it off in bins located in each dean̢۪s office.

̢ۢ Money is a better donation because the pantry can buy bulk food from the Community Food Bank.