Over 15% of the population in St. Louis experiences food insecurity, so we formed the St. Louis Chapter of AOH to address this disparity. We noticed a large amount of food waste within the WashU community, so we leveraged our connections to other students to garner food to redistribute. In addition, after reaching out to local and national businesses, we became more aware that they also experience considerable food waste. Consequently, we partnered with Panera and Dunkin Donuts to collect their food waste on a weekly basis and redistribute it to community members in need. To utilize the Washu community, we organized fundraisers through Chipotle. The proceeds from these fundraisers were used to purchase bulk non-perishable items for donation. In addition, we also promoted food drives on campus, as we noticed that especially at the end of the school year many students have an excess of meal points or non-perishable food that goes to waste. As a constant supply of food was established, we began reaching out to local homeless shelters and community centers to identify food needs. We donate our food to Wesley House Community Center in North St. Louis, Trinity Episcopal Church food pantry in the Central West End, and Church of St. Micheal and St. George in Clayton on a weekly basis.Â
We act in the name of humanity.
Let’s start today to change the world tomorrow.