Letters to the editor do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of The Easterner, its staff or Eastern Washington University. This letter has not been edited except for AP style.

Dear Editor of The Easterner, 

Food pantries in Eastern Washington help out the community and the surrounding communities. Not many people know or have heard about the various food panties that are around the area, especially struggling college students that depend on these pantries in order to survive. More and more students and people in our community are on the verge of not receiving their proper day-to-day needs.

Especially during these hard times of being in quarantine, and with multiple people getting fired or laid off from their jobs, these food pantries stalked with proper supplies, and more food pantries placed around Eastern Washington would be very beneficial.

Promoting and having access to these food pantries for families can better their life and the life of their families. The panic of people around this area rushing to stores to buy food and all of the basic necessities people need in order to survive is leaving people without the proper funds with nothing.

I believe that we a can fix this problem and bring more awareness to food pantries that are out in Eastern Washington for families that are struggling finding proper food and proper resources during COVID-19 epidemic. There can be multiple ways to approach this problem, and some solutions can take time and patience to achieve.

To start off we can look for bigger spaces that are around the Eastern Washington area, and once we can find a proper space we can then search for local companies and businesses that are willing to help us during this time.

We can also promote and spread more awareness around the Eastern Washington area by posting signs and directions to these pantries. Having them accessible to anyone who needs these resources and having people come will continue spreading awareness to this food issue.

Concerning the COVID-19 issues, these places will also follow the social distancing and the required cleaning and all of the rules that are provided from the governor and will follow extra safety steps in order to stay afloat and to be open.

I believe that with these actions going to benefit people who need these resources to survive during this time and after these hard times. With these recourses given to the community they will feel like they are valued and seen in our society. 

To find more about how to start and find ways to make a food pantry visit https://studentsagainsthunger.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/10/NSCAHH_Food_Pantry_Toolkit.pdf

Sincerely,

Hannah E. Icard