Beginning in December, BU Wheelock’s Student Services Office will open the Community Cares Food & Essentials Pantry at 2 Silber Way. This pantry will be open to BU community members in need of assistance with food insecurity or need for personal hygiene products.

Community Cares is funded by BU Wheelock’s Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Committee and the Wellbeing Project, a campus-wide initiative of the Provost’s Office. The organizers intend for the pantry to serve as a pilot project for more robust programs of support for community members facing food insecurity.

Spearheading the effort are BU Wheelock staff members Stephanie Clendenin, associate director of online student services; Maureen Desmond, student senior services coordinator; Paul Hastings, director of student services; and Valentina Varela, graduate assistant.

To help kick off the new food and essential pantry, Student Services will host “Delish for Less,” a cooking demo focused on how to make nutritious, tasty and inexpensive meals using ingredients that will be stocked at Community Cares.

“Delish for Less” will feature nutritional wellness experts from Sargent College, and recipes from the demo will be kept on file in the pantry for future shoppers to make use of. Support for the event also comes from the Wellbeing Project.

Attendees are asked to bring donations to the demo to help bolster the pantry’s opening supply stock. Pantry organizers recommend donations of non-perishable items like soup, cereal, instant oatmeal and essentials like feminine hygiene products, toothbrushes, and soap.

Looking forward, the pantry will also welcome volunteer support. Key areas of need include taking inventory, fulfilling orders, tabling, and contributing expertise.