Salem College students began the semester with a mission to find a way to provide for the local community by sharing excess food from campus dining locations. Twelve weeks later, Salem College is now the first college in Forsyth County to become an official member of the Food Recovery Network (FRN).

Participating in FRN allows Salem students to take excess food from campus to downtown Winston-Salem’s Samaritan Ministries. This semester, two recoveries were made, totaling more than ten pounds of hot, healthy breakfast items. During the spring, students plan to increase frequency with weekly deliveries. They also hope to extend the program’s reach by connecting with other agencies to deliver lunch items.

“Salem College Dining Services has been doing some great, sustainable things already. Joining FRN has allowed us to build upon that, in order to extend our hand to the local community,” says senior student Virginia Sparkes, one of the founders of Salem’s chapter of FRN.

Director of Administration Anna Gallimore and Greg Smith, General Manager of Aramark at Salem Academy and College, helped to greenlight the project, as Salem continues community engagement efforts.

Salem follows other North Carolina chapters of the Food Recovery Network, including Appalachian State University, North Carolina A&T, and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.