Hundreds show up to donate for the 5th Annual Feed the Need Food Drive

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- Hundreds of people showed up Wednesday to the Fresno State Red Lot to help Feed the Need.

The Big Fresno Fair and Fresno State joined forces today for the 5th Annual Feed the Need Food Drive.

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Folks get one free ticket to this year's fair in exchange for ten cans of food.

"We go to school with over 25,000 people and we don't know who is struggling with everyday stuff and it could be the person sitting next to us in our classroom," said Fresno State Student and volunteer Drew Engelman.

The Fresno State student cupboard serves nearly 4,600 students a month during the school year.

"This is something students struggle with at our campus and across the country," said Fresno State First Lady Mary Castro. "There's been a lot of research done to show the different percentages and on our campus, it was found that over 33% of our students were facing food insecurities."

Last year the cupboard served over 56,000 visitors, but keeping those shelves stocked isn't easy.

"When you're a student and you're going through a tough time you feel alone, but this shows they're not alone and the community believes in them," added Castro.

Students and staff worked together today in hopes of raising over 67,000 pounds of food.

They say they're all eager to do their part.

"It makes you feel so fortunate with what you have as a student," added Engelman. "We're all very lucky to go to a great school, have a good community and help others as well."

You can drop off your donations until 7 p.m. at the red lot on Barstow and Cedar Avenue. If you can't make it in person you can make a monetary donation here.