Service

Retriever Essentials – Food Security Initiative at UMBC

What is Retriever Essentials?

Retriever Essentials is a campus-based program at UMBC that addresses food insecurity by redistributing leftover food from campus dining to students in need. The initiative aims to support student well-being through sustainable and equitable food access, reducing food waste while fostering a stronger sense of community.

How I Got Involved

During the Spring semester, I volunteered through the Shriver Center to support Retriever Essentials as part of my commitment to community service and social impact. Each week, I helped collect, pack, and distribute food donations from campus dining services. These items were then placed in accessible locations across campus so that students experiencing food insecurity could get what they needed, no questions asked.

My role involved both logistical tasks and collaborative teamwork with other volunteers and staff. It was an eye-opening experience that made me more aware of the hidden struggles students face—and how much a simple act like redistributing food can do to relieve those pressures.

Reflection on Experience

Serving with Retriever Essentials helped me understand the value of direct action in addressing complex issues like food insecurity. This wasn’t abstract or hypothetical; it was a hands-on, sustained service effort that put me in touch with real needs on my own campus.

The experience challenged me to think more deeply about the structures that create inequity and how localized, sustainable solutions can begin to address them. It reminded me that service is most powerful when it’s ongoing, thoughtful, and community-led. I learned that consistent involvement—even if small in scale—can have ripple effects when done with care and commitment.

GCSP Learning Objectives

Community Engagement:
By participating in food recovery and distribution each week, I supported a program that directly engaged with the campus community to provide essential resources. This work helped promote equity and student wellness on a day-to-day basis.

Civic Agency:
Through this project, I developed a stronger understanding of my role in driving social change. I saw how collective effort, even at the campus level, can challenge larger systems of inequality.

Capacity for Reflection:
I regularly reflected on how my work fit into broader issues of sustainability, waste reduction, and access. It made me more conscious of how engineering solutions must account not only for efficiency and performance—but also for ethical and social impact.

Program-Wide Objective

This service experience strengthened my understanding of realistic vision and perspectivism. Working closely with a student-led support system showed me how meaningful impact often requires empathy, flexibility, and a clear understanding of context. By addressing food insecurity directly, I saw how resource-sharing initiatives can build resilience and foster inclusive communities.