Growing up in rural Mississippi, Heritage University President Chris Gilmer knew people who experienced hunger. He learned from his mother that it was important to do something about it.

“Folks would come by seeking donations for their church, and my mother would greet them at the door,” Gilmer said. “She’d always ask one question: ‘Do you feed the people?’” If they said no, she’d smile and let them know there wouldn’t be a donation from her that day. But if they said yes, she’d always contribute.

That experience was perhaps the earliest seed of HUFeeds, a program kicked off by Gilmer at his inauguration last fall, with the aim to eradicate hunger on the Heritage campus. With an ultimate goal of $1 million, the earned interest from the endowed fund will pay for the program in perpetuity.

“My mother instilled in me the belief that a good organization meets people’s most basic needs first,” Gilmer said. “So here at Heritage, if a student didn’t have breakfast, how can we expect them to sit in algebra at 9:00 in the morning and operate at their highest level? “The hierarchy of needs — food, shelter, safety — really does need to be attended to before students can learn.”

FOOD INSECURITY IS REAL

There’s significant food insecurity among Heritage students, said Corey Hodge, vice president of Student Affairs.

“We’re in the middle of one of the greatest agricultural centers of the country, yet food insecurity is a big issue in our community,” said Hodge. “In terms of grocery stores or lack thereof, we have a lot of ‘food deserts’. Added to that is the fact that income overall in the county is lower than the state median by quite a bit.”

Food deserts are described by the USDA as areas where a significant percentage of the population is low-income and live more than 1 mile (for urban communities) or 10 miles (for rural communities) from a supermarket. Moreover, the food most frequently available in these communities is low in nutritional value and comes from fast-food restaurants or convenience stores. In the lower Yakima Valley, the communities surrounding the university are among the most affected.

In 2023, with support from a gift from Kwik Lok Corporation and an anonymous donor, Heritage took its first steps toward helping students impacted by hunger by opening its on-campus food pantry, Eagles Market. It is an important source of food for students, supplying grocery items free of charge.

The market is popular and well-used, providing students with fresh and frozen produce, meat and other proteins, as well as non-perishable food items that they can take home to feed themselves and their families. However, it doesn’t address the needs of students when they are on campus.

“Students have busy, complicated lives. They are traveling to and from the campus, juggling families, working, classes, studying, and homework. We needed a way to take away the worry about where and how they will get their lunch and keep them focused on their academics,” said Hodge.

The solution came via a small voucher program initiated by Eagles Café staff. It provided a few dozen meals a week for students who couldn’t afford to eat. Gilmer quickly saw the need to expand this effort and create a more formalized program to serve even more students. He and his spouse, David Creel, pledged a personal commitment of $25,000 to support the voucher program.

The day Gilmer announced his and Creel’s donation, a friend attending the inauguration celebration matched their pledge. Since then, with additional donors contributing, the fund has grown to more than $100,000 in donations toward its $1 million goal.

NOURISHING STUDENTS’ SUCCESS

“We raise money for scholarships, infrastructure, so many important things,” said Gilmer. “But I wanted to take this on personally right from the beginning because it’s so foundational.

“Hunger weighs heavily on my spirit as a human being, and it weighs on my sense of responsibility as a leader.

“I want to get this to a point where there are no students experiencing hunger on the campus of Heritage University.

“We need to make sure that it’s a problem we alleviate, so students can focus on their studies and their success.”

If you are interested in supporting HUFeeds, visit heritage.edu/giving to make your gift online or contact the Heritage University Advancement Office at (509) 865-0700 to learn about other giving options.