When the week ends, I always have extra meal swipes from missing breakfast, getting food at events, or going out to eat. Additionally, those leftover meal swipes don’t roll over. To me, this seems like a waste of money and, instead, those swipes could be directed to help someone in need. 

One solution created by Penn State is a partnership with the non-profit Swipe Out Hunger. This partnership allows students to donate money when paying for their meal. The initative raised $5,400 in the fall semester and $45,000 for all campuses involved in the program in the fall and spring semester. What if Dickinson could do something similar?

Carlisle has a fairly large homeless population ,mostly due to factors out of Dickinson’s control such as low wages and lack of affordable housing.There are resources to combat this such as Safe Harbor, which provides apartments to those in need. But what about other necessities such as food? What is something that Dickinson can do to help? 

Extra swipes could be given a clearer monetary value and when the week ends students could donate those swipes. This money could be donated to a local food bank, such as Project Share of Carlisle, to distribute to those in need. Project Share has monthly distributions where families can get a week’s worth of food. Additionally, they host weekly farmstands which contain eggs, milk, bread, fruit, and other fresh and perishable goods. 

Dickinson itself could host a food drive with the assistance of Project Share. This would consist of getting a timeline, creating goals, organizing donations, and publicizing the event. Volunteers would be able to help set up tables and help facilitate how we would be able to get and distribute at this event. Or Dickinson students could assist in helping with these weekly distributions and farmstands. 

With students and Dickinson having the option to explore higher education and gain knowledge, it is also important to learn about the world we live in, and face the realities that some face. I believe the responsibility of those who can is to help people in need. There are many people in Carlisle and in the world who are struggling for basic necessities. I believe if Dickinson can help, we should.