Maverick Magazine Spring 2022: Kamrin Pressley ’22 Asked for Help When She and Her Family Needed It

Kamrin Pressley ’22, a Mercy senior from Co-op City in the Bronx, found herself moving from working at the Mav Market, the College’s community food pantry, to needing it to feed her family. Her father, a single parent, was sickened by COVID-19 and could not work. “He caught all the symptoms,” she said. “So during that time, because he was my provider, I had to provide for him.” Pressley had a federal work study job, but without her father’s income there wasn’t enough food in the house.

As a Mav Market student worker, she had seen fellow students ashamed to come in. She says one of her jobs was to reassure everyone the Market was a safe place, inclusive and without judgment. But she understands the pain. “It feels shameful when you can’t even feed yourself. The hardest thing somebody can do is ask for help. After you ask for help, the next step is also accepting that help.” So, she reassured her dad he didn’t have to struggle. She was going to pick up food and supplies from the Market.

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