Swoop’s Food Pantry is currently hosting its second annual Holiday Harvest Donation Drive. The drive’s purpose is to provide students and staff at Eastern Michigan University with items for their Thanksgiving meals.
The event was organized by the pantry's graduate assistants Colton Ray and Emily Bryson, alongside students in the Social Work Practice with Organizations and Communities class. The goal of the drive is to provide 100 shoppers with Thanksgiving food items for their tables.
The shopping event for the holiday donations will be held Thursday, Nov. 20, 2025, from 4-6 p.m. at the pantry in Pierce Hall Room 100.
If that time does not work for shoppers, the pantry will also be open the following Friday from 12-5 p.m. Thanksgiving foods are not guaranteed during this time, though it is predicted there will be leftovers.
Students or staff looking to shop should fill out the pantry’s 2025-2026 academic year intake form.
“Last school year, we had 80 people visit in the two-hour time span,” Ray said. “Our hope is to have 100 people come by during that time this year.”
Those looking to donate must sign up for what they are buying and are requested to bring in their items by Monday, Nov. 17, 2025. Donations should be dropped off at Pierce Hall Room 104. Pantry hours for donation drop-offs can be found on the Swoop's Food Pantry page of EMU's website. If donors are not available to drop off goods during the pantry's opening hours, they can email swoops_pantry@emich.edu to arrange a different time.
Anyone who wishes to give after Monday can still make donations. The pantry always accepts perishable and non-perishable foods, personal hygiene items, clothing, diapers and more. The Amazon wishlist and other needed items can be found on the donation tab of the Swoop's Food Pantry page.
Monetary donations are also welcome and can be given on the Ways to Give page on the EMU Foundation website.
Through the drive, the pantry is able to provide the EMU community with Thanksgiving meals by distributing items that are not regularly available, such as turkey and chicken with alternative halal and vegan options, pies, gravy, rolls and more.
“The holiday times are challenging for folks facing food insecurity," Ray said, explaining that the food drive is meant to help relieve some of that burden on the community.
A survey done by Jamaal Jones-Peters, a wellness graduate assistant, and Sarah Joseph, the Rec/IM assistant director of well-being and programs, reported that 46.5% of EMU students experience some type of food insecurity. Swoop’s Pantry works to combat that statistic and support students and staff members in need.
“Swoop’s is primarily focused on supporting currently registered students achieve academic success and support their well-being,” Ray said.
