Campus Life

Students turn emergency shelter into five-star restaurant on March 28

Penn State Berks students will turn Opportunity House, the Reading emergency shelter, into a five-star restaurant for its clients on the evening of Tuesday, March 28. Students will serve a four-course meal to Opportunity House clients, as well as an evening to remember.

Students enrolled in campus' four-year Hospitality Management program and other students throughout the college will participate in this volunteer event coordinated by two student organizations: Penn State Berks Hotel and Restaurant Society and Berks Cares.

The day will begin with students decorating Opportunity House’s dining area with centerpieces, lights, and various other enhancements provided by the Penn State Berks Hotel and Restaurant Society. Then they will work on food preparation and begin cooking the dinner at 5 p.m.

Then at 7 p.m., students will serve the four-course meal. Students will serve in the roles of cooks, sous chefs, hosts, waiters, and food runners. They will end the day by handing out the care packages to all of the residents.

Penn State Berks students providing a five-star dinner at Opportunity House has become a bi-annual event and it has grown in popularity with students, garnering more than 100 volunteers since its beginning in the fall of 2014.

For more information on the Opportunity House event, contact Autumn Fritz, assistant director of community development, at 610-396-6098 or via email at amr40@psu.edu.

Penn State Berks students prepare and serve dinner to the clients of Opportunity House, in Reading, Pennsylvania. Credit: Penn StateCreative Commons

Last Updated March 2, 2017