The Daisy Trade was created to provide students, faculty and staff on campus with food, hygiene products, books and other materials they may need. In the boxes contain items such as boxed mac and cheese, soup and on-the-go snacks like granola bars. The Daisy Trade has been at Meredith for a while and is located inside of the Chapel.
According to Rev. Stacy Pardue, the Campus Chaplain, there are four Daisy Trade locations: one in the Jones Chapel kitchen, a newer site called the Martin Market hosted by the Department of Food and Nutrition and the new red boxes that were built by a Raleigh nonprofit, The Food Drive for Kids. The boxes are located in front of the Cate Center and near SMB.
Rev. Pardue said that the boxes have helped with spreading the word about the Daisy Trade across campus and addressing needs. Rev. Pardue said, “I was the Chaplain from 2010-2016 and during that time had a number of students that came to see me for various reasons.” She added that “In [those meetings], I realized how many of our students were food insecure, so I started the Daisy Trade pantry. In this similar time period, colleges and universities across the country were also opening pantries, seeing the importance of helping students with basic needs such as food.”
Rev. Pardue also shared information about a recent partnership with the Raleigh Interfaith Food Shuttle, saying they are “providing Harris Teeter gift cards to help stock the Daisy Trade.” Other resources are available to students struggling with food insecurity. “I have a student emergency fund and help students that have unexpected financial demands that create significant hardships,” said Rev. Pardue. Students can email her at pardues@meredith.edu to set up an appointment for more information.
By Kayla Dunn, Reporter