Going hungry is something Linnie Spor, the Thayne Center’s Service Leadership Coordinator, has to deal with often. She said she has SLCC students that come to her when they don’t have anything to eat, and they don’t know what to do.
“Utah is 4th in the nation for food insecurities,” Spor said.
In order to help the SLCC community understand the gravity of the problem, for Hunger and Homeless Week, the Thayne Center is hosting an Oxfam Banquet.
This is how it’ll work: guests will draw tickets at the beginning of the night that will randomly assign them to either a high, middle, or low-income tier. How many tickets there are to a tier is based on the latest statistics about the number of people living in poverty. Each income level will then receive a meal that corresponds with their income level, according to www.actfast.oxfamamerica.org.
“Guests can also assume characterizations that describe the situation of a specific person at the income level to which they’ve been assigned,” the website explains.
Spor said that the Banquet is a very powerful event, and she is hoping that it raises awareness of global hunger and poverty.
Thursday November 18th, the Oxfam Banquet is being hosted at Taylorsville Campus’ Student Center, in the Oak Room from 6-8 p.m. It is open to the public and free for everyone, though it is encouraged to bring a can of food.
SLCC has had and Oxfam Banquet for at least seven years in a row. The Oxfam Banquet is “student driven,” and Linda Hilton from Crossroads Urban Center will be the guest speaker. Hilton works with the homeless every day according to Spor.
She also added that local hunger and poverty will be discussed along with global hunger and the lack of basic needs.
At the banquet there will be pamphlets for students in need, there are a lot of struggling students, “we know that,” explained Spor. In these pamphlets students will be able to find information about pantries, and other ways to get food. She referred to food pantries as the “band aid approach” and hopes that people will also learn to grow and care for food, as this is a more permanent fix. SLCC’s community garden is part of this attempt to educate people about growing food.
She also discussed the food co-op that can be accessed at foodco-op.net and is a way for the needy to get basic food such as vegetables and meat at discounted prices.
Spor said, “If you’ve not attended a SLCC activity yet, or even if you have, don’t miss this event.”