SAN DIEGO — Cathedral Catholic High School has become the first San Diego-area high school with an on-campus food pantry.
The Zak Myers Food Pantry and Service-Learning Center commenced operations on Oct. 17.
A brief opening ceremony included remarks from Dr. Kevin Calkins, president of Cathedral Catholic, and Appaswamy “Vino” Pajanor, executive director of Catholic Charities Diocese of San Diego, which is partnering with the school on this project.
The pantry is located in the campus’ Zak Myers Memorial Park, named for a deceased social science teacher and alumnus.
In his remarks, Calkins said, “I’m really excited … about what this can be for our school, but more importantly, for the people in need.”
After the ceremony, he said that the pantry initially will be open one day a week. The ultimate goal is five days a week, including holidays and summers.
Junior religion classes will be the first to serve there, Calkins said.
Pajanor told The Southern Cross that the pantry will serve food-insecure people in and around Del Mar and Carmel Valley.
Though it is a wealthy area, he said, “There are a lot of people here in this ZIP code and neighboring ZIP codes who are going hungry each day.”
“This pantry is a blessing for the community,” he said. It also demonstrates that, when like-minded organizations team up, “we can make miracles happen.”
