MISSOULA — Rivalry is in the air with the Brawl of the Wild happening on Nov. 23, 2024, but the competition on the field isn’t the only one.
To help both communities in Missoula and Bozeman a food drive competition began to help increase food security. Kat Cowley, the Director of ASUM’s Bear Necessities Food Pantry says that while it's centered around a football rivalry, the energy extends off the field.
“It means a lot to be able to harness all of the amazing energy that's already around something as big as the brawl of the wild and the MSU-UM rivalry to turn around and do something good for our neighbors and our students,” Cowley said. “We know that roughly one in five Missoulians use the Missoula Food Bank, and we know that here we're distributing around 2,000 pounds of food every single month. It worked so well to find something that already had hype and energy and media surrounding it, and to harness that to do some good in our neighborhoods too.”
Can the Cats is also a way for students to compete against each other while helping fellow students be able to have food in their apartments and tables.
“My absolute favorite part of Can the Cats is watching how many students rally together to feed the community. They know that their friends and their classmates come see us at Missoula, at the UM Food Pantry. They know that they also have neighbors that go visit the Missoula Food Bank, and they care,” Cowley said.
The University of Montana has a large student population, but a caring one.
“They care about the community. They care that everybody is able to have all of their basic needs met. So, seeing students rally together and come up with really cool and creative projects to help feed each other means so much to me,” Cowley said.
Cowley says while Can the Cats is a fun and exciting time, the food pantry at UM is special because Cowley was one of those students who struggled with food insecurity. Can the Cats also help to fill the shelves at the pantry.
“I actually opened the food pantry when I was a graduate student here back in 2019 and I was one of the students who was experiencing a lot of food insecurity and that uncertainty of, okay, I have homework. I have to get to class tomorrow. I also maybe have a bag of rice and some peanut butter at home. How do I make that work? How do I make ends meet?” Cowley said.
Can the Cats is the largest food drive of the year for the Missoula FoodBankand it’s just in time for the holidays.
“It’s our largest food drive of the year. It's a friendly competition with our friends over in Bozeman and the Gallatin Valley Food Bank. We compete off the field with who can raise the most funds and pounds of food to support and create more food security in our respective communities,” Jaeger said.
Both communities led to a record-breaking food drive last year, but both food banks in Missoula and Bozeman are looking to break the record again.
“Last year, jointly, we broke a record gathering and raising 1.5 million pounds in dollars of food during the two weeks of cat and the cats, not bragging too much, but we won last year. We're looking to win again. Missoula, we did over 800,000 pounds in dollars. $1 equals a pound. So, if someone donates $1 it equals a pound of food. And then we just weigh all the food that gets donated,” Jaeger said.
The Missoula Food Bank serves around 24,000 people every year and serves between 200 and 300 households on any given day. But food isn’t the only thing that is handed out at the food bank. With the holiday season quickly approaching, food from Can the Cats will be used to help families enjoy a Thanksgiving meal.
“We're taking a lot of stuff right now. We're getting ready for our big turkey distribution. That'll happen right as Can the Cats ends. Can the Cats ends on November 23. We'll distribute about 2,000 Turkey Day meals that next Sunday, on the 24th. So, think about the kind of Turkey Day fixing things you'd want to have on your table, stuffing, cranberries, turkeys, potatoes, all those things that make the holiday special. Think about that in terms of people making those donations,” Jaeger said.
The Missoula Food Bank is looking for mainly Thanksgiving-related items, but the food pantry at the University of Montana is looking for some of their more popular items.
“The most popular for us here is definitely peanut butter. We'll always be number one. Soup is a really big deal, especially soup that's not just chicken noodle or tomato. Those are delicious, but we tend to have more access to those. So vegetarian food items, gluten-free food items. What I always ask for is, what do you love to eat? Bring a spare can to us as well,” Cowley said.
