April Newsletter

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 10:31:23 -0400

Hello everyone, we hope you’ve had a great semester so far! We’re half way through already!

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Updates and Events:

The Global Pantry Initative:

We’re expanding our pantry’s flavors from around the world to highlight different cultures in our diverse community! For the month of April, we will be offering ingredients from West African and East Asian regions. Stop by and explore while supplies last!

Free Farmers Market Temporary Room Change on 04/02 and 04/09:

Thursday, April 2nd & April 9th. Center for Wellbeing

Our Free Farmers Market for the first two weeks will be in the Center For Wellbeing from 2:00pm - 2:45pm!

Special Earth Day Free Farmers Market

Monday, April 20th 12-1pm. Commons Terrace.

We’ve partnered with Chartwells, Student Success Initiatives, and the Office of Sustainability to bring you an additional Free Farmer’s Market during the Earth Day Fair! This market will be outside on the Commons Terrace and will be our biggest market yet.

Money Smart Week Session - How to make it work: Smart ways to use campus and community resources:

Wednesday, April 15th 12-1pm. Commons 318.

We’re hosting a session to teach how to navigate campus and community resources. We understand that a good budget can only get you so far when it’s stretched thin. We’re here to tell you that you’re not bad with money, we’re experiencing a challenging economy. With that in mind, you can still make it work by taking advantage of existing resources both on and off campus!

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Data:

In the month of March, we’ve distributed 8.3k lbs worth of food and other household essentials, with over 2k visits to our pantry! This also includes calculations from our Free Farmers Market on Thursdays, our mini pantry in the police station, and vending machine.

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Suggestion Box:

To improve our services, and try to address everyone's different needs, we would love to hear your feedback!

https://forms.gle/oUvd1EaMcmmasKFn8

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Thank you so much for taking the time to read our newsletter.

If you have any questions about what we provide, volunteering opportunities, or general inquiries, feel free to email us at retrieveressentials@umbc.edu at any time!

Sincerely,

The Retriever Essentials Team