Carolyn Arnold loves to be involved in her community and without any hesitation, she encouraged her son and business partner to help raise fund for Pete’s Pantry.
The Arnold team from Weichert Realty-Market Edge purchased 250 shirts in six colors for Pete’s Pantry, a food bank for North Arkansas College students.
Rachel Nelson, career services coordinator for North Arkansas College said, “For every dollar donated, we can purchase five meals for a needy student.”
The shirts are on sale for only $10 each and available in a variety of sizes.
Career Pathways Initiative (CPI) director, Rebecca Martin said, “We are thankful for any donations, but monetary donations help our students the most. Cash flow is important.”
Nelson added, “With cash, we can purchase food-specific items at a great discount from the Food Bank of North Central Arkansas.”
Pete’s Pantry began in 2015, when college officials realized students were having to drop out of school because they didn’t have the necessary funds for groceries and school.
“Last spring, we helped 70 students which includes helping their families. So we probably fed 200 people during the spring semester,” Nelson said.
Since the beginning of Pete’s Pantry, seven thousand pounds of food and in-kind donations have been accepted for students, without using any funds from the college. The facility and staff of the college are very supportive of Pete’s Pantry and proud of the fact they can help keep students in school.
Northark student, Haley Markle designed the logo for the front of the Pete’s Pantry T-shirts.
Carolyn and Travis Arnold said they were thrilled to be able to help with this worth-while cause. The Arnold team can be reached at (870) 743-5555.
Anyone can purchase T-shirts in the school book store or call Rachel Nelson at Pete’s Pantry at (870) 391-3307. Donations can be made out to the North Arkansas College Foundation which is a 501(c)3.
The bookstore phone number is (870) 391-3220 and the hours are 7:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Friday.
