Author: Greg Gaspard
Schriever, LA – Following the donation of a commercial refrigerator from Healthy Blue Louisiana earlier this year, a ribbon cutting ceremony for the Fletcher Food Locker was held May 13, 2019.
Guest speakers at the ceremony were Good Samaritan Food Bank Director, Lawrence DeHart, and Louisiana Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed.
Research from Loyola University New Orleans found that 46 of the 64 parishes in Louisiana have food insecurity rates of 15% or higher, and some as high as 34.4%. The national average in 2017 was 11.8%.
The college is working with the Good Samaritan Food Bank to keep the shelves full of food. Students can select small items to help immediately, larger quantities to support a student for one week, and if the student needs to provide for a family, they will be given a month’s supply of food to take home.
“Fletcher Technical Community College is proud to open a new food pantry for our students,” commented Fletcher Chancellor Dr. Kristine Strickland. “We know that 36% of all college students experience food insecurity and in the State of Louisiana that number is even higher. This pantry will provide students the opportunity to find nutritious food offerings for themselves and their families. Fletcher will continue to strive to remove the barriers that prevent students from successfully completing the training and education they need to strengthen themselves, their families and our community. We thank all of our generous donors for making this pantry a reality.”
While the Fletcher Food Locker is located on the Schriever campus in the BP Integrated Production Technologies building (224 Weatherford Dr., Schriever), it is available to Fletcher students at all facilities. For more information on the Fletcher Food Locker or to request assistance, please contact Caitlin Bruce at 985-448-7919 or Caitlin.bruce@fletcher.edu.
Photo caption: Community members and supporters of the new Fletcher food pantry, “The Food Locker,” gathered for a ribbon cutting ceremony on May 13. Left to right: Kenny Wood Sr. Fletcher Foundation Past Chair; Nicol Blanchard, CEO, Houma-Terrebonne Chamber of Commerce; Fletcher Chancellor Dr. Kristine Strickland; Dr. Kim Hunter Reed, Louisiana Commissioner of Higher Education; Lawrence DeHart, Good Samaritan Food Bank Director; and Tammy Ledet, President/CEO, Thibodaux Chamber of Commerce.