By Valentina Toro
Contributor
A warm atmosphere filled the Adanti Student Center Ballroom on the evening of Oct. 22 as students, faculty and staff gathered for Dining for a Difference, a fundraiser dinner organized by the university food pantry to raise awareness about food insecurity on campus.
The three-course pasta dinner, hosted by the Dean of Students Office in partnership with the Student Government Association and the Office of Student Involvement, aimed to unite the community while supporting students facing financial hardship.
“We just wanted to be able to have an event to bring the community together and support our pantry,” Angelina Ovalles, the graduate intern for the Dean of Students Office, said. “So, just the space for faculty, staff and students to mingle, have dinner, but also kind of like a good way to fund our food pantry.”
The university’s food pantry has become a crucial resource for students who face challenges meeting basic needs. With more students visiting each semester, the need for operational funding and supplies has continued to grow.
The funds raised from the dinner will directly help sustain and expand those services through the university’s Support Our Students Fund.
“The funds directly raised by this go towards a foundation within the university that is focused on supporting students in need, students in distress,” Alandre Alexis, the dean of student affairs and the pantry supervisor, said.
The event aimed to combine community building with gathering support for the food pantry.
“The biggest part of funds that are collected throughout the year goes toward purchasing merchandise for the food pantry, office supplies, pretty much operational things for the food pantry,” Alexis said.
Attendees shared dinner and conversation while learning about how food insecurity impacts the campus community.
Each table displayed flyers with QR codes for guests to donate directly to the food pantry, while students’ testimonies about how the pantry has supported them were featured on the screen.
The shared stories served as a reminder that the event’s purpose went beyond dinner — it was about helping students in need and inspiring continued support.
Nursing major Hailey DeNucci, a junior, said raising awareness about the issue is key to creating a more understanding campus environment.
“It’s important for us to know that there are students on campus that might not have the financial resources, and they’re actually food insecure,” DeNucci said. “So, I think that just bringing attention to that is important so people are just aware of it.”
Organizers said events like Dining for a Difference go beyond fundraising by fostering connection and empathy across the university. They added that the strong turnout reinforced how meaningful events like this can be for the campus community.
“A lot of new students get introduced to the food pantry at some point or another, so events like this bring together the community, make them aware of the efforts and the contribution with our communities towards things like this,” Ovalles said.
