The Students Helping Oz Peers (SHOP) pantry is open to provide food and toiletry items to campus members in need.
“SHOP has now gone to an online order and pickup system for food and toiletry items,” said Colleen Sewall, the project’s coordinator and a junior marketing major. “It is easier than ever for anyone to get their essential items during this tough time.”
Via the online order form, members of the campus can select a customized order, then work with SHOP to coordinate receiving their items. The pantry in the basement of Penfield Library stocks a wide variety of non-perishable food and personal items.
The project also seeks volunteers to ensure the smoothest possible process to get items to those in need. While volunteering helps on a resume, moreover those who help out know that they are making a difference in others’ lives.
“Some benefits of volunteering at SHOP are that our volunteers get to make a direct impact on combating food insecurity in the city of Oswego,” Sewall said. “Our volunteers bag and deliver orders to our users (in a location outside Penfield Library), and those hand-picked orders could be potentially feeding that individual for the next week.”
Through all the challenges, Sewall is pleased that SHOP has been a stable resource, primarily for students, that has continued to provide for the SUNY Oswego family.
“Being a part of SHOP has given me a greater sense of community and love for the people of Oswego, and I hope it could do that for others too,” Sewall said.
Current hours are:
- Sundays, 1 to 3 p.m.
- Mondays, 5 to 7 p.m.
- Tuesdays, 12:30 to 2:30 p.m.
- Wednesdays, noon to 2 p.m.
- Thursdays, 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
- Fridays, 2 to 4 p.m.
For more information or to apply to volunteer, visit the SHOP website or email shop@oswego.edu.