Hundreds of people in the city lack access to adequate shelter.
Some live in cars or abandoned buildings, and others do not have access to shelter of any kind.
Project HOME, an organization that works to aid homeless people, estimates about 650 people live on the streets of Philadelphia at any given time.
Recently, freshman biology major AaronRey Ebreo began using his extra meal swipes to help feed homeless people he encountered. Ebreo said he wants to help other students to do the same.
The Temple News is inspired to see Ebreo’s altruism and encourages the university to get involved in helping Ebreo implement his vision on a larger scale.
Ebreo said he got the idea to use his extra meal swipes when he saw boxes of food being moved out of a university dining hall. The man moving the food estimated it was worth about $200.
The university should make a concerted effort to donate its extra food to homeless shelters or to assist Ebreo in creating a system in which students can proactively use their meal plans to make donations.
Creating such a program would allow the university to create a positive influence in North Philadelphia and to cut down on food waste, keeping in line with Temple’s sustainability initiatives.
There is no reason the university cannot better put to use excess resources. We hope Ebreo’s outreach serves as an example to the university community to look for ways to give back.
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