It's easy to get lost in the stressful world of biochem labs, history theses and orgo midterms. There's little break to the rigorous schedules and strenuous class work at Hopkins. But the Hopkins chapter of Campus Kitchen keeps students grounded by reminding students of the misfortunes of the world outside of our own bubble.
The chapter was founded in 2009 by a student-led initiative. It operates as a branch of the national organization of Campus Kitchen, a nonprofit group that fosters nutritious and healthy lives.
"Waste is wrong: be it food, money, or the potential for people to live productive lives," Director of Food Resources, senior Audrey Swanenberg said.
The primary mission of the organization is to prevent campus waste and transform it into help for the less fortunate. To that end, one of their main activities is gathering excess food from local restaurants and vendors and using it to provide meals to those in need.
Since its inception, nearly 260 volunteers have completed 600 hours of community service and gathered over 8,500 meals to redistribute to the community. That equates to thousands of pounds of fresh and canned food from the 11 organizations they work with locally.
The group is organized in a seven member leadership team and an army of volunteers. The leadership team consists of three paid interns and four unpaid volunteers. The interns head resources, logistics and events — this includes Swanenberg's position. The volunteer of the leadership board control aspects such as media and the delegation of tasks to volunteers.
To provide meals to Baltimoreans in need, Campus Kitchen collaborates with many local organizations. For example, the Franciscan Center and Church of the Guardian Angel are both heavily involved in the Hopkins chapter's outreach programs.
Local grocery stores, restaurants, and businesses donate their excess food and leftovers to the organization and the food is redistributed to schools, churches, and shelters throughout the Baltimore community. For instance, Campus Kitchen takes advantage of the "Fresh Bagels Only" policy of Einstein's Bagels at Hopkins. Volunteers collect the left over bagels and take them to after school programs as snacks for the students.
The organic grocery store in Mt. Vernon, Milk And Honey, donates its excess food products to Campus Kitchen, which volunteers ro redistribute the products to the Franciscan center. Campus Kitchen also works with other campus favorites such as Donna's, and even the Hopkins food provider, Aramark, to redistribute food to the hungry.
The group organizes several programs as part of its multi-pronged mission to raise awareness, increase outreach, prevent waste, and provide for those in need. For example, the leadership board organizes two cooking shifts every week, one at the Franciscan Center and another at the Church of the Guardian Angel. Members who are safe serve certified serve food to the less fortunate and about six members attend each weekly session.
Not only does the chapter provide food to those who need it, but it also educates the community about nutrition and safety, building long-lasting roots and ensuring a better tomorrow. Volunteers hold nutrition classes at Waverly Middle School as part of an outreach program created by Eve Rorison, a senior Public Health major, in an attempt to build excitement about being healthy in the students.
In addition to their philanthropic efforts, the group hosts a number of on campus events. Last night the group hosted Hunger and Homelessness Awareness Trivia Night at Nolan's. The group used the opportunity to advertise for the upcoming homelessness awareness event this weekend, "A Bench is Not a Bed."
This Saturday night, in conjunction with Goucher College, Loyola University, Morgan State University, and the University of Maryland, the Hopkins chapter will be sleeping on the steps of the Baltimore City Hall as part of National Hunger and Homelessness Week. The event and movement is part of an effort to increase empathy and awareness of homelessness and remove the stigma associated with homelessness.
"There are a lot of stereotypes surrounding the homeless population. It's important to remember that there are many factors outside of an individual's control that may lead to homelessness, and that there are many places to intercept those cycles of poverty. Providing people with food is just one way to alleviate the injustice of homelessness and unnecessary hunger," Swanenberg said.
This event has been endorsed by the National Student Campaign against Hunger and Homelessness (NSCHH) and the National Coalition for the Homeless (NCH). It is held every year the week before Thanksgiving as part of a tradition of giving back and giving thanks. Swanenberg estimated that there would be about 200 people at the event downtown.
Furthermore, the chapter is hosting a clothing drive in anticipation of the upcoming cold weather. Donations of old clothing and warm coats can be dropped off in the AMR mailroom as well as in Charles Commons until tomorrow, Friday, Nov. 18.
For the future, the chapter is currently planning a new community garden at the Hopkins Eastern Campus to grow organic, fresh food. However, they are still in search for a creative name for the garden and have opened the naming process up to students. The winner will receive a Gertrude's brunch for two. The garden will serve as relationship building tool — connecting Hopkins to the Baltimore community and establishing a charitable mind set in the Hopkins world. Safe and sustainable food production methods will be encouraged and Baltimore's hungry will be helped.
With the overwhelming amount of upcoming events, Swanenberg bemoaned the declining number of volunteers. She claimed it was an annual trend — excitement that begins with the start of the year but dies right after midterms and right before finals. However, Campus Kitchen depends on its army of volunteers to execute its lofty goals and missions. Without the volunteers, the 20,000 pounds of food that Campus Kitchen has thus far recovered would not have been possible.
"There is just so much opportunity to expand and use all the free student labor we have on our hands. We could do so much to implement social change," Swanenberg said. "Hopkins can do more — every one of us can do more. We just need more people to dedicate their time. We could get distributers from the Harbor! We could get crates and crates of food. But we need volunteers to deliver it, to redistribute it. We need their involvement and their creativity so that we can deliver what we promise."
