Colorado State University-Pueblo is making a difference this school year both locally and nationally. Student Autumn Black and CSU-Pueblo’s fraternity Lambda Chi Alpha are partnering to generate some positive change by bringing a food bank to campus.

Black has taken on a huge task this school year to install and coordinate a food pantry on CSU-Pueblo’s campus through her President’s Leadership Program internship.  Black has researched numerous other university food pantries to help generate ideas for CSU-Pueblo.

“The Pack Pantry will provide the food-insecure students, staff, and faculty of the CSU-Pueblo campus with non-perishable food items and hygiene items once a week,” Black said.

Lambda Chi Alpha recently launched their monthlong Feeding America campaign to raise donations and canned goods for Pueblo’s local Care and Share food bank.

Lambda Chi Alpha fraternities nationwide are partnered with Feeding America to collect food and donations for the domestic hunger relief cause.

Care and Share is now also partnered with CSU-Pueblo’s food pantry, as well as Feeding America.

According to Black, Feeding America and Care and Share go hand in hand. Any of the food the fraternity donates to Pack Pantry will be going to Feeding America because of the partnership with the Care and Share.

Southern Colorado’s Care and Share food bank said they “provide food directly through Mobile Food Pantries, which provide perishable and non-perishable food to families living in rural communities or other areas where there are minimal food resources.”

Cisco Cervantes, Lambda Chi Alpha’s philanthropy chair, said every dollar raised for Feeding America will convert to ten pounds of food, which will secure nine meals.

Lambda Chi Alpha currently has barrels placed in front of the student resident halls for collection of canned goods.  Throughout the next two weeks they will be moving the barrels around to more heavily trafficked areas in the university.

Lambda Chi Alpha’s biggest event is their bag drop off.  The fraternity will drop bags off at businesses, homes and student housing Oct. 25.

On Nov. 1 they will retrieve the bags in hopes that they will be full of canned goods.

Because of the partnership with Pack Pantry and Care and Share, the food pantry will be located on campus in the Occhiato University Center.

“A very important partner to the pantry is the Veteran’s Resource Center. Not only are they providing a location next door to their facilities, but their Military Support Club and Student Veterans Association have given full support to the project,” Black said.

The new location for the Pantry Pack will give Lambda Chi Alpha an area to store their canned goods during their campaign. “We have a 200 pound goal for the food drive, and we think that will really help the Pack Pantry,” Cervantes said.

Both Black and Cervantes show a great deal of interest in the future of the program after they graduate.

“I want this pantry to be a legacy that carries on after the termination of my internship and, ultimately, after I graduate in May 2015,” Black said.