Community: Serving Our Neighbor by Gena Bilden, MA, Director of Campus Operations and University Center
Saint Mary’s mission empowers us to live lives of service and leadership. Saint Mary’s Minneapolis Campus serves students but also serves the greater Phillips West Neighborhood community. Saint Mary’s mission reaches beyond the colleagues and students on the Minneapolis Campus. Not only am I fortunate to work with dedicated staff and faculty that serve our students on the Minneapolis Campus, I also get to work with neighborhood organizations that serve the Phillips West Neighborhood community members.
One organization that Saint Mary’s partners with is Sister’s Camelot, a food sharing program that distributes organic food to the community. The Phillips West neighborhood is a food desert. The United States Department of Agriculture defines food deserts as being “areas where people have limited access to a variety of healthy and affordable food.” Saint Mary’s provides a location for the food distribution and many staff volunteer to unload the truck and then bag the food for distribution. Each month over 150 bags of fresh, organic food are distributed. The food is available to anyone including our students, staff, and faculty.
Volunteering with Sister’s Camelot is very rewarding. Knowing that I am helping bring fresh whole and organic foods to our Phillip’s Neighbors is important to me. Often, food shelves receive shelf stable processed foods which serves its purpose, but adding fresh whole and organic foods to diet, helps elevate health in so many ways. I’ve very much enjoyed the staff and volunteers I’ve worked with in sharing good food with our community.
Another way Saint Mary’s serves the neighborhood community is partnering with many Park Avenue and Neighborhood Organizations. Phillips West Neighborhood is home to more than 50 nonprofits that serve community members. Broadening Saint Mary’s reach within the community not only helps the community, but furthers our mission of service and leadership.
