Corky’s Cupboard’s new home is officially open to the Emporia State University campus.
Campus members, leadership and local community members gathered Friday afternoon to cut the ribbon on the new food pantry located at the bottom of the ESU Memorial Union. The new location is a significant expansion of the food pantry established in 2014 and has since provided services to over 3,000 students.
The pantry’s expansion followed a survey conducted in recent years that showed 28 percent of ESU students had either reduced or entirely cut out at least one meal because of a lack of money. Along with increasing its physical space, the pantry’s expansion also included the addition of a Basic Needs Coordinator position filled by Cale Bolen.
Bolen spoke with KVOE News at Friday’s ribbon cutting and says the new space is just the start of new efforts for Corky’s Cupboard which recently established a new food reclimation program called “Nourish the Need.”
On top of this, ESU is also “rolling out” a new Basic Needs Emergency Fund that will provide financial assistance to students with “immediate and essential expenses.” The new fund will not be available for “everyday expenses” but rather critical needs such as support for temporary housing, need for food and unusual or unforeseen medical expenses.
The new fund is set to launch by the end of February, however, an exact date is currently pending.
