Food for all: How Cats’ Cupboard is filling a need and addressing food insecurity on campus
When visitors first walk through the doors of Cats’ Cupboard, the K-State food pantry,
they’re greeted by a warm and welcoming space. Sunlight pours in through the windows,
and the shelves and refrigerated coolers are all stocked with food for shopping —
including fresh produce. There’s even a seating area for students to take a moment
to relax or chat.
“I hear all the time, ‘Wow, this is such an incredible space,’” says Shelly Williams
’14, Morrison Family Director of Cats' Cupboard. “It's so warm and inviting and bright
and vibrant. At the end of each semester, we do a guest satisfaction survey, and I've
gotten a number of really incredible responses through that around the building.”
One respondent even commented: “The building really reduced the stigma of collecting
food.”
Cats’ Cupboard first opened on campus in 2017 as a small shelf in the Office of Student
Life. Later that year, the pantry transitioned to an 800-square-foot space in the
basement of Fairchild Hall. Then, thanks to a gift from David ’75 and Tracy Lockton,
the former Ecumenical Campus Ministry building at 1021 Denison was renovated and transformed
into the new pantry.
The pantry’s new location has been open a little over a year, and is available to
all K-State students. Faculty and staff can also visit the pantry every Thursday.
Students can select from a range of boxed and canned foods, such as cereals or pasta;
fresh meat and vegetables; and even hygiene products. The facility also has easy access
to parking.
About 280 guests visit Cats’ Cupboard per day. More than 41,000 individuals were served
by the pantry in 2023, and as of September 2024, that annual total was already more
than 42,000.
“I can't express to you how meaningful it is to come to work every day and to just
see the effect that walking through the doors empty-handed and leaving with a cart
or a bag of groceries, of your most basic needs,” Williams said. “That relief that
I see on people's faces as they walk through the doors and walk out not empty-handed,
is quite special.”
A passion for meeting needs
Williams grew up in a military family and graduated from Manhattan High School. She
and her husband, Sande ’12, spent some time in Chicago but decided to move back to
Kansas to be closer to family and to further their education at K-State. Williams
studied Applied Human Sciences while balancing multiple jobs and raising a family.
“I worked really hard to graduate, and it was a huge challenge,” she remembers. “My
family and I could have used a resource like Cats’ Cupboard, and it didn't exist at
the time. So I feel privileged to be in this role now.”
After graduating, she worked for several local nonprofits, and she and Sande, who
is a trained chef, co-founded Manhattan Soup Kitchen, an organization that sought
to reduce food waste. Williams said she learned that up to 40% of all food produced
in America ends up in the landfill — some of which could still be usable.
Food labeling can often be confusing; phrasing such as “best if used by” does not
indicate food safety (with the exception of infant formula), and is not required by
federal law. Rather, manufacturers use this labeling to help consumers and retailers
decide when products are at their best flavor or quality. In 2020, Manhattan Soup
Kitchen was able to redirect about 80,000 pounds of food from the landfill.
Williams joined Cats’ Cupboard in spring 2021, as the world was beginning to emerge
from the COVID pandemic. Williams said she was proud to learn that Cats’ Cupboard
was able to remain open throughout 2020, pivoting from an in-person pantry to curbside
pickup.
Reducing food insecurity
Colleges and universities across the U.S. have reported between 30 to 50% food insecurity
among their student populations, and K-State is not an exception.
“Research has been conducted for several years now here at Kansas State University
on food insecurity, and that research has found time and time again that around 40%
of students at Kansas State University are food insecure, meaning they don't have
access to enough food to live a healthy, active lifestyle,” Williams reports. (Editor’s note: The USDA defines food insecurity as a household-level economic and
social condition of limited or uncertain access to adequate food.)
When students experience food insecurity, it impacts their ability to focus on their
classes and assignments, and even interact with their friend group.
“Their whole life is affected by the lack of certainty that they can access food,”
Williams said.
Cats’ Cupboard strives to make it easy for students to get the food they need, without
any stigma attached.
“On an individual level that should be applauded, because [the students are] brave
enough and courageous enough and resilient enough to stand up and say, ‘You know what,
this is hard, and I do need help,’ and that's OK,” Williams said. “And the fact that
there is a place like Cats’ Cupboard that they can go to consistently find that access
to food should also be applauded.”
She added that many of the guests return to the food pantry to volunteer.
“They see it as a way to give back, because maybe they are unable to financially,
but they see that as an opportunity to fit between classes, to come back and volunteer,”
she said. “And I think that's beautiful, because that's exactly what you want to see,
is K-Staters accepting help when they need it and paying it forward to those who need
it in the future.”
Interested in learning what you can do to support the work of Cats’ Cupboard?
- Contribute financially through the KSU Foundation
- Donate items to the pantry
- Volunteer for a shift at the pantry
- Download a flyer and help spread the word about the work of Cats’ Cupboard
What guests have said about the impact of Cats’ Cupboard:
"Having access to food contributes to a sense of security and allows me to better perform my work and studies. When I am unsure where my next meal is, my days feel anxious and stressful. Cats’ Cupboard alleviates this stress, by being a regular source of good foods. It's calming to know that a good meal is just a couple blocks away. One of the best parts is that it is free and no-questions asked! Every other place, on campus especially, makes you qualify for this and that. Many services are restricted to only those who qualify. I am glad to not have to qualify my humanity and hunger."
"Thank you so much for being generous and donating to the Cats’ Cupboard. As I am student teaching and my husband is entering into his master’s degree, we are under a bit of financial stress. Knowing that I can have a portion of our grocery bill lifted due to the Cats’ Cupboard has been a massive blessing. I hope you will continue to see the impact it makes on students and families. Thank you again!"
"Cats' Cupboard has been so helpful for me to continue to focus on my studies at K-State! While academic graduate studies often have a stipend, it sometimes is not enough to make ends meet, but Cats' Cupboard fills that gap and allows me to be a healthy and happy person that can more readily give back to my community and invest in my studies! To all the donors and funding sources for Cats' Cupboard, I cannot thank you enough!"