Giving Tuesday focuses on Basic Needs

By Mark Muckenfuss

Giving Tuesday, Dec. 4, is around the corner, and Cal State Monterey Bay officials are encouraging the campus community, alumni and the community at large to consider contributing to the Otter cause. 

Last year, donors contributed about $9,000 to campus programs. Mike LaPlante, vice president of Advancement, is hoping to surpass that amount this year and is asking donors to consider focusing on the school’s Basic Needs program.

“Our Basic Needs program has never played a more urgent and critical role in our students' lives,” LaPlante said. “Our student reliance on our Basic Needs program for food to offset the reduction in SNAP has skyrocketed. Support is needed now more than ever before to help our students through this challenging time.”

Amy Zamara is director of the Basic Needs program and said donations are an important part of its operations. 

“Basic Needs is fortunate enough to receive baseline funding to help support the food pantry operations, but the ever-evolving needs of the student body require additional funding,” Zamara said.

Giving Tuesday is an important part of that.  

“With previous Giving Tuesday donations,” she said, “we were able to purchase hundreds of meal vouchers, parenting student supplies for the Hub and dozens of parking passes to provide to our students. 

“This year,” she added, “we have launched our Hub membership, which allows us to work with individual students to craft a personalized food security strategy that works for them, including prepared weekly Hub boxes, emergency food orders at grocery stores, and food vouchers. In November alone, with all of the SNAP delays, we gave out thousands of dollars worth of meal  and farmers market vouchers. We were able to do this with the generous support of Associated Students. But without continued donations, we will be unable to continue our current levels of student support.”

Donations can be made at the Giving Tuesday for Basic Needs web page. Zamara points out that the money is well utilized.

“The donations we receive are not used to pay for staff,” she said. “Every dollar is going directly into a student's mouth or wallet.”