Food for thought: Wolf Shop teams up with Pack Provisions for donation drive

Meet Pack Provisions: The only on-campus food, clothing and supply pantry tailored specifically for the University of Nevada, Reno community. Pack Provisions is a student-run organization that assists members of the university community who are struggling to obtain the basic necessities needed to get by. The organization has a surplus of items to give to students, faculty and staff in need. Donations from non-perishable food items to warm coats for the winter to notebooks and pencils to even feminine hygiene products are continuously flowing through the pantry.            

You may be wondering, "Then why do we still have so many struggling students here on campus?" Part of the answer to that question is that the majority of the University community has not been aware Pack Provisions even exists. On top of this, Pack Provisions does not have a ton of money for purchasing needed goods. When Lindsy Sullivan, a volunteer for Pack Provisions and an employee of the Nevada Wolf Shop, saw the struggles Pack Provisions was facing and the drive the Wolf Shop had for giving back to the community, she came up with a brilliant idea: Teaming the two organizations up together to host a donation drive to meet both of their goals and needs and benefit the university community.            

The next question to tackle: Which type of drive would be more beneficial - a monetary drive or an item drive?            

"I proposed the idea to Chris Partridge, the Program Director of Pack Provisions, and Steve Dubey, the Director of the Nevada Wolf Shop," Lindsy said. "Once they were both on board, I spoke at a meeting of Wolf Shop student departmental supervisors and asked for their ideas and feedback, which was very valuable in deciding that we wanted to go with a monetary donation drive instead of an item drive."            

Both teams realized that monetary donations allow for more flexibility and mitigate the need for volunteers to come in and collect goods. Thus, the idea was born to ask each Wolf Shop customer to round up their purchase to the nearest dollar to donate to Pack Provisions.            

From that point on, both teams were unstoppable. Designs for marketing materials were made by ASUN's Ink Blot Marketing, the Wolf Shop asked every customer if they would make a donation to Pack Provisions, Pack Provisions continued to work their magic to help the university community and Lindsy, Brittany Brown (the Student Director for Pack Provisions) and their team of volunteers were constantly at work to help make the drive a success and help those in need.            

"Overall, this donation drive was the product of a lot of collaboration and team work," Lindsy said.            

The drive lasted about a month, from Jan. 23 to Feb. 19. According to Lindsy, she spearheaded the drive in part because felt a strong desire to help the community in need.            

"I suppose a part of why I decided to be in charge was my desire for a challenge and to get involved with the community. It was an awesome experience that will help me in the professional field," Lindsy said.            

The generosity that the Wolf Shop displayed during this drive was also very noteworthy. The store team has been very supportive and helpful with their part of the donation drive. Everyone on the team was very helpful and always willing to step in and volunteer.            

The drive was a fantastic success. The total amount raised during the drive was a whopping $1,856.37! The support Lindsy felt from the community for Pack Provisions affirmed her belief that doing this drive was a wonderful idea. She hopes to use the money fundraised to be used to expand on Pack Provisions' non-food offerings.            

"There are so many things that are important to one's well-being and success," Lindsy said. "It is my hope that this money will allow us to purchase items such as pens, pencils, calculators, binders and other school supplies. I would also like to see a portion of it go toward hygiene items like feminine hygiene products, soap and toothpaste."            

The Pack Provisions team is looking forward to potentially doing a similar fundraiser in the future. To quote Lindsy, "the opportunities are limitless."

Pack Provisions is conveniently located in the Center for Student Engagement on the third floor of the Joe Crowley Student Union and is open and available to anyone within the University community. They are present, and they are ready to help anyone struggling to get by. Pack Provisions gets it. Let's not let the issue of campus hunger and financial insecurity go ignored.            

Need help? Want to volunteer? Have some donations to drop off? Visit Pack Provisions on the third floor of the Joe in the ASUN Center for Student Engagement, or go to http://www.unr.edu/student-engagement/engagement-support-services/pack-provisions for more information.