Those who need help finding food can get assistance from 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Saturday at the mobile food pantry at the Martin Luther King Jr. University Union.

Crystal Brown, assistant director of civic engagement and volunteerism, said she and Beth Gillespie, interim director of civic engagement and volunteerism, have been working with the mobile food pantry for two semesters.

They have worked with Charleston’s local food pantry for more than four years.

Gillespie was inspired to work with the mobile food pantry because of the food insecurity in Coles County, which she said has been the highest in years.

Food insecurity affects 50 percent of Coles County residents, and 23 percent of the citizens are in poverty.

Food insecurity is a term that is used to describe when people do not know where their next meal will come from and if that meal will be nutritionally adequate.

Gillespie and Brown addressed the poverty and food insecurity in the area two different ways.

First, they partnered with local food pantries.

In order to address hunger in the Eastern community, Gillespie and Brown paired up with a local church to staff a food pantry.

“Kids that don’t eat can’t pay attention and it makes it that much harder to learn,” Gillespie said.

That is why each family gets three days worth of food depending on the size of the family.

“Each family is giving canned fruits and veggies, meats, bread, and even desserts,” Brown said.

She added that local farmers also donate food.

On average, the mobile food pantry serves up to 100 people in an hour and a half. Because of the amount of people who use the pantry, 30 volunteers are needed to help run it.

Most of the volunteers are Eastern students, Gillespie said.

Gillespie said volunteering at the pantry will be a great experience because volunteers are “physically putting food on families’ tables.”

Students leave knowing they made a difference in their communities, Gillespie said.

“Helping families put food on their table is a powerful experience,” Gillespie said.  “Students that put on their time and energy keep a complete understanding (of) what it means to make a difference.”

The deadline to volunteer for this pantry has already passed, but another opportunity to volunteer will be on Sept. 24.

Transportation will be provided for those that need it.

Students interested in volunteering at the mobile food pantry event can sign up at the office of civic engagement and volunteerism, or visit their website at http://www.eiu.edu/volunteer/.

Tiffany Ayres-Dunn can be reached at 581-2812 or [email protected].