Great Bay Community College will be able to meet the food-insecurity needs of more students throughout the academic year thanks to a $5,000 grant to support the college’s Food Pantry.
Gather, the social service agency that provides food and meals to people experiencing hunger in the Seacoast, received the funding from the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation/Thomas W. Haas Food Fund and Fuel Program. Through its Seacoast Food Providers Network, since 2023, Gather has provided financial support for the Great Bay Food Pantry at The Heron’s Nest in the Student Success Center.
“This grant is an enormous source of sustainability for the Food Pantry for both semesters,” said Brittanie Mulkigian, Director of Student Life. The Food Pantry experienced double the demand during the 2024-25 academic year over the year before, with 960 visits from 191 unique students who utilized the food pantry during that time, she said.
With the grant, the Food Pantry will purchase items that it does not receive from the New Hampshire Food Bank and its Fresh Rescue partnership with Aldi Supermarkets. Items include small quantities of fresh produce, dairy products, cleaning supplies, toilet paper and paper towels and feminine hygiene products, which are not covered by SNAP.
Julie Dockery, Student Support Coordinator, said the grant will have a direct positive impact on students and their success at school. “Our pantry does make it easier for students to make ends meet and finish school. It also reduces the stress of worrying where the next meal is coming from and how to feed the family,” she said. “I have had students tell me that they don’t know what they would do without the Food Pantry.”
Great Bay student Miranda Green is grateful for the support she has received. “The pantry has been so helpful in filling my fridge,” Green said. “I’m so thankful for this resource.”
Another student, Ethan, who asked to be identified using only his first name, agreed. “The pantry has allowed me to be away from home and not worry about going hungry, allowing me to focus on school.”
Facilitated by Gather, the Seacoast Food Providers Network focuses on building a more connected, effective, and collaborative charitable food system, said Allison Bussiere, Food Systems Coordinator for network.
“The network connects food access partners in the region to share challenges, exchange best practices, and work toward shared solutions,” Bussiere said. “The network helps strengthen relationships, creates space for learning and collaboration, and aims to ensure that the voices of frontline food providers and the communities they serve are represented in the broader goal of food security for all.”
In addition to providing funds to supply the college’s food pantry, since May of 2022, Great Bay and Gather have partnered to create an innovative and hands-on approach to reduce food insecurity among students which expands the impact within the broader community. The Gather Café at Great Bay was established in 2022 and provides nutritious meals to students at a 50-percent discount. As part of its partnership with Gather, Great Bay has made its commercial kitchen available to Gather for its Cooking 4 Community program, which provides free meals (90,000 meals in 2024) for the Seacoast community. Students have access to 10 percent of those prepared meals in the After Hours Fridge on campus. Additionally, Great Bay students can volunteer to serve meals at Gather’s community dinners as a way of giving back.