In the second week of the Student Hunger Drive, the Pleasant Valley students and staff continue to push towards big goals. In effort to combat community hunger, the Spartans set out on a mission to compile over 60 thousand pounds of food throughout the competition. Pushing past 10 thousand pounds in the first week– inclusive of the food collected through competitions and events such as the one highlighted at the Spartan-Bulldog football game– the students and staff of Spartan Nation believe there is more to be done in coming weeks.
While PV looks to collect the highest amount of cans of area high schools, competition throughout the building has been on the rise with the introduction of this year’s theme: Spartan Survivors. 24 teachers managed to scrape through the first round, collecting more than fifty items. History teacher, Sara Russell, was week one’s winner, compiling over 240 pounds of food and creating excitement within her classroom about the major event. Many teachers, including Russell, look to spark the interest of students through incentives. These incentives include raffles, extra treats and exemptions from extra assignments.
While many students look to the incentives as a reason to donate, the Pleasant Valley Band, long time competitor in the Student Hunger Drive event, emphasizes giving without the need for an incentive. For the large group, this has been a tactic that has always seemed to work. The directors are hoping that it carries them through this competition again this year, encouraging all with the ability to donate to contribute. In his second year with the Pleasant Valley band and fine arts department, Rob Medd hopes that the band can provide a large amount of cans that will make a community impact. “When I was teaching at an after school music program that served many students living in poverty, I saw first hand how providing food could impact the lives of others. The family of a student in the program was attempting to move out of a shelter and into an apartment, but they needed assistance to be able to afford both food and rent for the first few months. The music staff and others all chipped in to help get them food so that they could afford rent.” Arriving to the Pleasant Valley community with this story, Medd hopes to inspire all students to think of the impact they can make that is much bigger than themselves.
Spartan Assembly members look to make this year’s Hunger Drive special with a variety of opportunities to donate. There have been a numerous amount of extra opportunities to donate such as a fundraiser at Your Pie and a successful showing at improv night, which helped to raise funds for the Hunger Drive as well. Spartan Assembly Executive Team member, Haley Germain, encourages members of the Spartan community to keep the competition levels high and remember the cause that the school is looking to benefit. Germain emphasized, “We cannot do the Hunger Drive without everyone’s support and so far, it’s been awesome. I hope that we continue donating at this pace and encourage students, parents, teachers and community members to donate. Every contribution does make a difference, no matter the size.”
Spartan Assembly encourages the community to join them at the next Hunger Drive fundraiser on the evening of October 17th at Panera.
