Food Bank in its own league of ministry
Serving the Lee University students and nearby communities in need on a regular basis, the Lee University Food Bank has been an important part of the university service-learning experience, but it has only undergone significant expansion recently.
After the Leonard Center assumed oversight of the Lee University Food Bank in 2004, it has been a mainstay for outreach opportunities to minister to the students in need and the East Cleveland community, according to William Lamb, Director of Field Experiences for the Leonard Center.
“The Food Bank has expanded; it is a much larger facility today, but the mission is still the same – to serve and mobilize the students to serve the community,” said Lamb.
The Food Bank recently moved into the new Leonard Center building on Parker Street in October of last year, from its much smaller accommodation in the basement of Sharp Hall.
Getting a new home in the new Leonard Center complex has been a major boost for the Food Bank ever since its installation in 1994. The Food Bank is striving to further expand its services to the people in need and to give ample service-learning experiences to the students by recruiting more student volunteers in the near future, added the director of field experiences.
• The Food Bank is open 2:30 – 4:30 pm Monday through Friday for Lee students without a meal plan.
• The Food Bank is striving to further expand its services and to provide the students with more service learning opportunities.
“A sandwich they take out of the fridge means a lot more to them than me, now that I not in a meal plan I am beginning to realize it too,” said Sam Fink, Student Coordinator for the Lee University Food Bank.
A second semester senior, Fink said that he started volunteering at the Food Bank to get a few easy hours, but now he looks at it as a way to minister to the needy and works four times the number of hours he worked when he started.
“Understanding Food Bank was a big deal for me; it is much more than just a room full of supplies,” said Fink.
The Food Bank is open 2:30 – 4:30 P.M. Monday through Friday for Lee students, including married students, students with family or anybody without a meal plan though the campus cafeteria.
Bri Preese, a Lee University junior who goes to the Food bank whenever she can says that she likes the idea of the university’s service for the students.
“It is a wonderful thing the school does for us by providing free food which takes some pressure off the finances,” said Preese.
