Students and their families dropped off over 900 bags of food and over $16,000 worth of grocery store gift cards in support of local charity Feeding South Florida, Sunday, Nov. 7 from 10-2 p.m.
Student volunteers, including the football and baseball teams, helped unload cars and count donations. “It feels great to help out the local community and it’s a good team bonding experience,” senior Jorge Machado said.
The PTO volunteers, who organized the event, made sure everything ran smoothly and kept track of service hours. “This is our third year doing the event and we are always glad that our students can help make an impact,” President Rhonda Lewis said.
All the proceeds will go to Feeding South Florida, a charity that serves four counties in South Florida and is a branch of Feeding America. Each year, Feeding South Florida provides food to over 1.4 million individuals.
“With rising costs, demand has increased, but our donations have decreased as well. That’s why these food drives are so important for us to be able to give back to the community,” Ruth Bonet, the volunteer engagement manager for Feeding South Florida said. She explained that after the pandemic, it’s been a slow journey to reconnect with schools and organize donation drives.
“The efforts of the students here will ensure that more people can live without food insecurity and have a nice Thanksgiving meal. We are especially glad that we received so many gift cards, since in addition to providing food, it also returns a sense of dignity in allowing everyone to choose the food they want to eat,” Bonet said.
