How Schools Across the Country Are Making a Difference

As we approach the holidays, our family’s focus shifts towards togetherness, tradition, food, and gift-giving. Every place I visit offers visual reminders of the holiday season. For those living in insecure households, this might be one of the most difficult times of the year, particularly because there is such an emphasis on food and “things.”

This year, I’m finding that I have a heightened awareness to the problem of hunger in our country. This is the season when people rally together to collect food and monetary donations to help local food banks, which may be overwhelmed at this time because of low food supplies, increased demand, or dwindling financial resources.

When I first learned of the Schools Fight Hunger program, I immediately thought about how brilliant it is for schools to partner in the fight against hunger. Whether you realize it or not, there is likely one, two or even ten children at any given school, at any given time, wondering where their next meal will come from. It’s impressive to hear that over 2,000 schools and more than 1.3 million students are participating in the Schools Fight Hunger Program. But what resonates with me personally are the stories of how individual schools are making a difference. Beyond the traditional food drive, what are schools doing to relieve some of the strains of child hunger?

Students at the Bishop Stang High School in Masachusetts got creative when they decided to host a”Rock-a-thon.” Students from the school’s National Honor Society gathered food by asking sponsors to donate items in exchange for a student to rock in a rocking chair for one hour. The total amount of food collected was over 9,000 pounds, which benefitted local food banks. The annual “Rock-a-thon” is a tradition and since 2000, they’ve raised more than 100,000 in food donations.

In Verona, Kentucky, elementary students hosted a football-themed food drive. Students went to their own pantries and local grocery stores to fulfill a donation list for a chance to win prizes including NFL tickets. The school also dedicated a day to hunger education and helped raise awareness among their students about the problem of child hunger in America. Through their food-drive, the school raised 7.500 pounds of food whicih was donated to a local food bank.

Some schools, like East Columbus Magnet Academy in Georgia, host monthly food drives to help students understand the value of giving and the importance of raising awareness about the problem in our country. Still others, like William E. DeLuca Jr. Elementary in New York, aspired to create a visual through a Human Food Chain.

If you’re thinking about donating, I highly recommend non-perishable food items. Here is a list of the most important items you can donate to food banks during the holiday season: