UPPER BURRELL, Pa. -- Penn State New Kensington students, faculty and staff are volunteering for a series of Day of Caring events to learn first-hand about poverty in the local region.
Poverty is at the forefront of Chancellor Kevin Snider’s initiatives to help revive western Pennsylvania communities. Day of Caring is a program of the United Way of Westmoreland County, and the campus is one of numerous volunteer groups that assisted local agencies Sept. 12.
A group of faculty and staff traveled to the Westmoreland County Food Bank warehouse in Delmont, Pennsylvania, to assist with painting and staining projects. Utilizing volunteers for the work allows the food bank to concentrate its resources in other areas, such as purchasing food products for needy families in the region. Last year, the food bank distributed 7.4 million pounds of food.
The campus volunteers were Patty Brady, director of enrollment management; Jason Bush, director of business and finance; Corinne Coulson, enrollment services specialist; Stephanie DeMaro, regional job and internship developer; Danielle DeStefano, assistant director of enrollment management; and Deborah Strickland, instructor in nursing.
Community service has been a major component of Snider's seven-year administration. During the summer, the campus Lion Ambassadors, a student organization, helped at the Food Pantry at Mount St. Peter Parish in New Kensington. The volunteers packaged and distributed food to families and individuals.
The project was the first for the new Community Roar Corps, the community service arm of the Lion Ambassadors. With the help of a grant from the Penn State Alumni Association, the corps designed team T-shirts that are worn by members during volunteer functions.
In addition to working at the pantry, the Lion Ambassadors collected donated canned goods and other food items from faculty and staff, and delivered them to the pantry. With students back for the fall semester, volunteering at the food pantry has evolved into a monthly project.
“As we continue to create and foster relationships in the community, many opportunities are available for us all to consider in regard to volunteering and working together as a campus family for the greater good of our area,” Coulson said.
Snider created a campus Poverty Committee tasked with collaborating with nonprofit organizations to assist with poverty-related programs. The committee is working with the community on various service projects, including a Poverty Summit.
The summit is scheduled from 10:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 14, in the campus Conference Center. The event will feature community speakers offering insight into poverty in the local area and an interactive poverty simulation experience providing a glimpse of how poverty affects the people in our community. In addition, a nonprofit agency fair will run from 2 to 3 p.m.
To RSVP for the summit, contact Coulson at 724-334-6018 or crc26@psu.edu.