We are hearing more and more about different food pantries for families in needs, including pantries and closets at schools where students can help their families at now costs . . . and here’s another one for you — about a school offering even more to students in need.
After a year in the making, Faribault High School in Minnesota opened a new school store they are calling “The Nest.”
The Nest is a student store that offers essential needs to students at no cost — items like clothing, toiletries, and more.
Faribault High School was inspired by similar efforts at another high school in Shakopee offering similar items in response to a growing need among teenagers, such as food and basic hygiene items.
The Nest is housed in a private room with no staff in an effort to help students in need without any fears of judgement or embarrassment.
Currently, The Nest is experiencing a very wanted problem . . . too many donations and not enough space.
Kaylee Wiens, one of the teachers at Faribault High School shared, “The donations keep coming in. We have so much stuff and not enough space . . . But that’s a good problem to have. We have a meeting [coming up] to take over more space.”
Kaylee is also an advisor for the Falcon Project — the school’s student-run community service club that offers numerous projects to benefit the school and the community.
The Falcon Project as done so much already . . . from building a community mental health program to knitting surgical hats for kids. Just last month, the club worked to bring in donations so they could buy gift cards for kids in need to use throughout the school break for the holiday season.
The Nest is supplied almost fully by donations . . . there were a few school supplies that had been purchased, but the rest was donated items.
Two of the students who are members of the Falcon Project and help run The Nest shared some worry classmates might not use the help because of embarrassment, but that wasn’t the case.
Amarissa Bednar, a junior with the Falcon Project and The Nest said, “I think in the beginning there might have been some embarrassment. But it has really been accepted. We didn’t know there was such a big need. The donations are flying out the window.”
