Crosstown Foodout: UC and Xavier food pantries call attention to food insecurity

UC and Xavier are fierce rivals on the court. 

But with the Crosstown Shootout, a tradition that dates back to 1928 in men’s college basketball set for Saturday, Dec. 14, at 2 p.m. in the Fifth Third Arena, another very friendly rivalry between the two universities is now in place to help ease food insecurity. 

The Crosstown Foodout allows fans of the Cincinnati Bearcats and Xavier Musketeers to compete by supporting a campus food pantry at each school. An estimated 23% of college students nationwide experience food insecurity, according to the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

Fox 19 and Local 12 aired segments on the Crosstown Foodout.

The Bearcats Pantry and Resource Center at UC and The Store at XU are encouraging fans to show their support for their school through donations, which are welcomed throughout the year. The pantries will measure the number of individual donations that come in, so support of any value goes a long way. 

Supporters can make a monetary donation or an Amazon Wish List purchase by visiting www.uc.edu/bcp.

At UC, the Bearcats Food Pantry and Resource Center provides free food, hygiene items, cleaning supplies, diapers and wet wipes to students of all backgrounds with food and other life insecurities. The pantry also provides the Career Closet, which offers free professional clothing to students who are preparing for interviews, internship experiences or professional classroom presentations. In recent years, the Bearcats Pantry and Resource Center has expanded to include multiple satellite locations, a campus garden and a social services support program.  

UC Blue Ash and UC Clermont both have pantry services as well. This semester the Bearcats Pantry and Resource Center has been visited 5,100 times by over 1,500 users. It is open to students, staff and faculty. The pantry is located in Stratford Heights, Building #16, on UC's Uptown campus, 2634 Stratford Ave., and operates as a walk-in service. There are two satellite locations on the Uptown campus in the College of Allied Health Sciences and the College of Education, Criminal Justice and Human Services. 

Please consider donating: 

• Food, hygiene items and household goods 
• Gift cards for food and other emergency items 
• Healthy snack stipends
• Dining hall passes
• Professional clothing
• Diapers, formula, wipes and other baby supplies for parents
• To-go bags around campus and two satellite locations
• Community/social services connection program

The Store is Xavier's on-campus food pantry and is managed by Care and Support Services in the Dean of Students office. The Store supports students by providing a space where students can obtain needed non-perishable, fresh and frozen food items, school supplies, household products, and hygiene items to currently enrolled students at no cost with their student ID. The Store is located at The Village Apartments, one of Xavier’s on-campus residential communities. Additionally, Xavier students can access The Store’s products by visiting one of the four satellite locations on campus.

View Fox 19's segment on the Crosstown Foodout online.  Check out Local 12's story on the awareness effort as well. 

Learn more about the Bearcat Pantry and Resource Center along with food pantry efforts at Blue Ash College and Clermont College online. 

Featured top image shows the Bearcat Pantry and Resource Center. Photo/Andrew Higley/UC Marketing + Brand.