ACE Campus Food Pantry Receives Donation from Evonik

Purdue University’s ACE Campus Food Pantry has received a $2,000 donation from Evonik, one of the world’s largest specialty chemicals companies.

The donation is the result of a reallocation of funds normally used by Evonik’s Employer Branding and Process Technology & Engineering Teams to connect with students at career fairs. Evonik is a regular supporter of career fairs at Purdue and has made donations to campus food pantries at other universities as part of this initiative.

“Knowing that the implications of COVID-19 have added additional financial strain to students and their families, Evonik believes that these donations will not only present the greatest opportunity to connect with our student community, but that they will also serve as an example of how Evonik strives to lead beyond chemistry,” the company stated in a press release.

The donation will benefit ACE’s mission to make food more readily available to members of the Purdue community who may be experiencing food insecurity on a consistent or temporary basis. ACE partners with campus organizations such as the Purdue Student Farm and Purdue Agriculture to provide fresh seasonal produce in addition to non-perishable items. As a Food Finders Food Bank partner agency, ACE also supports efforts to address systemic issues in an attempt to eradicate hunger.

“It means so much to us at ACE to be receiving this donation from Evonik,” said Nathan Baron Rowland Miller, student director of ACE Campus Food Pantry. “This money will be immensely helpful in providing items to the pantry that are often hard to get. Things like frozen meats, other proteins, spices and shelf-stable milk are often harder to come by and this opportunity us to not only provide for our clients now, but well into the semester.”

ACE Campus Food Pantry is located on the bottom floor of the Baptist Student Foundation, 200 N. Russell Street, and is open on Tuesdays from 12 – 6 p.m. and Sundays from 5 – 8 p.m. ACE additionally operates “pop-up” pantries at various locations around campus on a rotating basis.

ACE Campus Food Pantry is a student organization advised and supported by Civic Engagement & Leadership Development. CELD provides on-campus and community-based experiences for students to develop their leadership and civic identities in order to prepare them to facilitate change in local, national and global communities. CELD is part of the Leadership and Professional Development Initiative within Purdue Student Life.

The Protect Purdue ambassadors, a group of students who help promote a culture of safe behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic, have also chosen to support ACE as part of the Martin Luther King Jr. Day of Service. All proceeds from the Protect Purdue store will be donated to ACE.

Those interested in supporting ACE Campus Food Pantry financially can visit this page. For in-kind donations, please contact the pantry via email.