Blog, Features
About Maddalyn DiMichele
Executive Board Position: Engagement Director
Past Lion’s Pantry Experience: General Member (2022-23)
Majors: Labor and Human Resources
Minors: SMEALBusiness Fundamentals Certificate
Other 2023-2024 Involvement:
- Student Human Resources Management
- Abba Java Volunteer
A Q&A with Maddalyn
1) What are you most excited about The Lion’s Pantry this year?
- I am really looking forward to making connections with every individual and trying out new opportunities and experiences with the team!
2) What initiatives, campaigns, or goals would you like to see during the 2023-24 academic year?
- I would love to see individuals enthusiastic about food insecurity and attempting to give back to the community. I want to see more involvement in the engagement fair and to keep retention levels high with new individuals!
3) Why should new students join The Lion’s Pantry?
- It’s an amazing opportunity to meet new people while dedicating your time and effort towards a great cause! It is something that new members will learn from and be able to create a passion towards positive change!
4) What does food insecurity mean to you?
- As a freshman at Penn State, you learn a lot about yourself and you are introduced to new challenges and struggles. Food insecurity is something that no student should have to encounter while at Penn State. Lion’s Pantry is a great cause and embraces everyone. I wanted food insecurity to be something people can talk about without being uncomfortable or embarrassed about.
5) What excites you most about the position you hold for The Lion’s Pantry during the 2023-24 year?
- I am most excited about working with everyone! I want to listen to the Executive Board ideas as well as general members. I know that this team is willing to put in time and effort towards changes that will be beneficial for everyone!
6) Please share one of your favorite memories from The Lion’s Pantry.
- I always loved the themed Kahoots 🙂
Some Fun Facts About Maddalyn
Favorite Comfort Movie: Surf’s Up
Favorite Way to Unwind After a Long Day: Talk to my friends and listen to music
“Go-To” Fun Fact: I LOVE coffee!
Blog, Features
About Jessica Ware
Executive Board Position: Food Drive Coordinator
Past Lion’s Pantry Experience: Sunday Workday Volunteer
Majors: Kinesiology
Other 2023-2024 Involvement:
- Women’s Health and Exercise Lab (Research Assistant; Writing Thesis with Advisor)
- Clinic Intern at University Health Services
- Penn State Women’s Club Ice Hockey
- Penn State Women’s Lacrosse
- Alpha Epsilon Delta Member (Health Honor Society)
A Q&A with Jessica
1) What are you most excited about The Lion’s Pantry this year?
- I am excited to make connection with the other execs while being able to impact an important community at Penn State.
2) What initiatives, campaigns, or goals would you like to see during the 2023-24 academic year?
- I would really like to see more volunteers and the knowledge about the Pantry spread throughout Penn State. I think it’s a really great club and if more people knew about it, it could be even more impactful than it already is.
3) Why should new students join The Lion’s Pantry?
- To be a part of something that is bigger than them and to impact the lives of others. It is also really rewarding experience.
4) What does food insecurity mean to you?
- Food insecurity means that there is uncertainty in someone’s life. I view it as an important cause because if we can eliminate that uncertainty, it frees up time for people to worry about other life problems and insecurities that need attending. Without this primary need of worry, it can make a difference in someone’s life and they can focus on more interpersonal needs instead of basic ones.
5) What excites you most about the position you hold for The Lion’s Pantry during the 2023-24 year?
- I am excited to interact on the exec side of the food drives. I have always participated in club sports but I’m looking forward to organizing it and communicating with others from all around.
6) Please share one of your favorite memories from The Lion’s Pantry.
- I haven’t been volunteering for long, but I enjoyed the Sunday workdays because I got to know everyone. We were all there to organize and help out but I enjoyed establishing relationships most.
Some Fun Facts About Jessica
Favorite Comfort Show: New Girl
Favorite Way to Unwind After a Long Day: Going for a run or going out with friends!
“Go-To” Fun Fact: I don’t like chocolate or that I have a bulldog.
Blog, Features
About Katie Martell
Executive Board Position: Secretary
Past Lion’s Pantry Experience: Volunteering!
Majors: Biology
Other 2023-2024 Involvement:
- Penn State Pre-Dental Society
- Penn State Biological Students Society
- Alpha Epsilon Delta
A Q&A with Katie
1) What are you most excited about The Lion’s Pantry this year?
- To meet new people and learn more about my role in mitigating food insecurity at Penn State.
2) What initiatives, campaigns, or goals would you like to see during the 2023-24 academic year?
- Food Drives
- Groups, such as Greek Life or sports teams, signing up for volunteering on weekends
- A 5K Food Drive!
3) Why should new students join The Lion’s Pantry?
- It’s a great place to meet new people and help out the community and university.
4) What does food insecurity mean to you?
- To me, it means not knowing when your next meal is. It is an important cause because many people struggle with it in silence and don’t always know what resources they have available to them.
5) What excites you most about the position you hold for The Lion’s Pantry during the 2023-24 year?
- Getting to work with like-minded individuals and people who want to help the community
6) Please share one of your favorite memories from The Lion’s Pantry.
- Volunteering with friends and looking forward to seeing them every weekend.
Some Fun Facts About Katie Martell
Favorite Comfort Movie: Pirates of the Caribbean
Favorite Way to Unwind After a Long Day: Netflix
“Go-To” Fun Fact: I am really good at cutting hair!
Blog, Features
About Colin Taylor
Executive Board Position: Treasurer
Past Lion’s Pantry Experience: Manager (2022-23)
Majors: Accounting
Minors: Information Systems Management
Other 2023-2024 Involvement:
A Q&A with Colin
1) What are you most excited about The Lion’s Pantry this year?
- I am excited to help grow the Pantry and spread awareness about it.
2) What initiatives, campaigns, or goals would you like to see during the 2023-24 academic year?
- I want to improve our data collection to inform us about popular food items and help improve the ordering process.
3) Why should new students join The Lion’s Pantry?
- The Lion’s Pantry is a great way to make a difference in the local community. Anyone who is a Penn State student can visit The Lion’s Pantry to grab some food. Volunteering is fun, and the work is pretty easy.
4) What does food insecurity mean to you?
- Food insecurity is common around the country, but it is especially high around colleges. Being able to help provide food to college students is important to me.
5) What excites you most about the position you hold for The Lion’s Pantry during the 2023-24 year?
- I am excited to work with the team to help improve the pantry. The Lion’s Pantry is relatively new and has been rapidly growing.
6) Please share one of your favorite memories from The Lion’s Pantry.
- One of the things I like about The Lion’s Pantry is meeting new people. Whether I make a connection with a pantry guest or a team member, I am always meeting someone new.
Some Fun Facts About Colin
Favorite Comfort TV Show: Curb your Enthusiasm
Favorite Way to Unwind After a Long Day: I like to play poker with my friends.
“Go-To” Fun Fact: I like to play tennis.
Blog, Features
About Juan-Rodrigo Solares
Executive Board Position: Vice President
Past Lion’s Pantry Experience: Pantry Manager & Cub Pantry Coordinator
Majors: Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Minors: Microbiology
Other 2023-2024 Involvement:
- Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Chair – Lion Ambassadors
- Millennium Scholar Program Tutor
- Undergraduate Researcher at Joyce Jose Lab
A Q&A with Rodrigo
1) What are you most excited about The Lion’s Pantry this year?
- I am very excited for all the amazing and new things that we will do this year. I think we have a great team, and I am very excited to be working on some new projects that we have been working on.
2) What initiatives, campaigns, or goals would you like to see during the 2023-24 academic year?
- I would like to see more food drives and more food insecurity awareness events. In my opinion, I think raising awareness is a very crucial thing, and I think that as an organization that focuses a lot on combatting the issue, we should also dedicate our time on educating people about the issue.
3) Why should new students join The Lion’s Pantry?
- The Lion’s Pantry is an amazing organization as it has a great mission: help students. You get to play a huge part on a resource that a lot of students on campus use, and ultimately, you are working for a great cause. You can also meet a lot of great people who have the same motivation and drive as you towards combatting food insecurity.
4) What does food insecurity mean to you?
- Food insecurity for me means a big issue. It is ultimately a lack of access to foods due to someone’s economic situation. As students, we have a heavy workload, and having the stress of not knowing when your next meal is going to come is ultimately a big burden. Combatting this issue is important as everyone deserves to have a healthy life, one where they have access to food and a healthy lifestyle.
5) What excites you most about the position you hold for The Lion’s Pantry during the 2023-24 year?
- For the 2023-2024 year, I will be the vice president of the organization. The thing that excites me the most is having the capability of joining and conducting different projects and initiatives while helping the president. Due to the flexibility of my position, I can also assist on multiple things and help the rest of the exec board. Having this ability of playing an important part in the organization is something that is very important for me.
6) Please share one of your favorite memories from The Lion’s Pantry.
- My favorite memories were the workdays we had last year. They were always a lot of fun, and it was very worthwhile seeing how organized the pantry became every Sunday after each workday. Knowing that the work we put in helped a lot of students during the last academic year made it more worthwhile.
Some Fun Facts About Rodrigo
Favorite Comfort Movie: Grey’s Anatomy
Favorite Way to Unwind After a Long Day: Reading a book, hanging out with friends, and drinking a something sweet
“Go-To” Fun Fact: My Go-To fact is that I used to do horseback riding.
Blog, Features
We would like to welcome to The Lion’s Pantry team, Ben Lindgren! Ben will be serving as our AmeriCorp Member this summer. Be sure to say, “Hello!” to Ben during your next visit to The Lion’s Pantry.
About Ben Lindgren
Position: AmeriCorps Member
Former Volunteer or Occupational Experience:
- High School’s Student Council Service Committee and Food Drive Director
- UPUA At-Large Representative
- Students United Against Poverty Ambassador
- Student Farm Club Member
- Whole Foods Market Cashier
Major: International Politics & Criminology
Q&A with Ben
1. What are you most looking forward to about your position?
I look forward to working with like-minded individuals at Penn State while finding new connections between the organizations I am passionate about. It is such an honor to do this work that I love through the federal organization of AmeriCorps! As a rising second-year student, I am thrilled to learn more about the operations of the pantry and to assist with its expansion and implementation of new projects.
2. What tasks will you be completing through your position as our AmeriCorp Member?
I will be working on a standardized operations manual for the Lion’s Pantry that can also be utilized at various Commonwealth campuses. I will also be assisting with leading volunteer workdays at the Lion’s Pantry, presenting at various events regarding student poverty and the Lion’s Pantry, conducting research with the Office of Student Care and Advocacy, and establishing new programs with the Student Farm.
3. What are you most excited about working with The Lion’s Pantry this year?
I am thrilled to see the implementation of new operations procedures at the pantry that I will assist with while also fostering new connections with affiliate university organizations (e.g. the Student Farm, Students United Against Poverty, and the University Park Undergraduate Association). I also can’t wait to meet some of the awesome students that assist with operating the Pantry!
4. What does food insecurity mean to you, and why do you view it as an important cause?
Food insecurity can truly affect all aspects of one’s daily life. College students, like those here at Penn State, may struggle with their academics, social life, and extracurriculars due to this incredibly challenging problem. It is the responsibility of all of us at Penn State to ensure that each individual has access to not only food, but quality, nutritious food products that enhance one’s overall well-being.
5. What is your go-to fun fact?
I have visited over ten national parks!
