Area schools drive to stock pantries

By Dawn Goodman
Staff Write
dgoodman@observer-reporter.com
Area food pantries are finding more items on their shelves during the holiday season.
That’s because many area schools are holding food drives and fundraisers.
Canonsburg Middle School held a canned food drive and collected 2,216 cans, said seventh-grade social studies teacher Adam Manion. He said it was the most the school had collected for the food bank.
“It’s local,” he said. “You could put a face on it. There was the possibility of local families without food for the holidays. Everybody wants to help. And they do.”
Teachers from the school have a football game with teachers from another district. This year it’s Washington. Students get tickets by bringing in a can of food, said Canonsburg Middle School Student Council Treasurer Bianca Kienzle.
The school is also having a Chinese auction and a dodgeball game to raise money for the Canonsburg-Houston Food Bank, said Canonsburg Student Council President Josiah Hritsko. That money will be donated Wednesday.
Schools have found creative ways to raise money for the food banks.
Trinity East Elementary had a lemonade sale last week with all proceeds going to the Washington County Food Bank.
“It’s been incredible,” said second-grade teacher Stacy Rush. “We’ve had lines down the hall to buy a 25-cent cup of lemonade.”
Rush, along with other second-grade teachers Stephanie Johnson and Christine Peterson came up with the idea as part of a lesson for students to read the book, “Lemonade for Sale.”
In the story, the children sell lemonade to others. But the teachers wanted to use the fundraiser as a lesson.
“We wanted to teach the children a lesson on giving,” Rush said.
The school sold 2,744 cups of lemonade and collected $686, she said.
Avella had a food drive that ran from Nov. 4 to Wednesday. The high school community service club sponsored the drive, and the food will be donated to the Avella food pantry, said high school Avella science teacher and club sponsor Evy Breitigan.
She said the club organizes the event annually. This year’s response was double that of past years, she said.
“The club members show a lot of compassion and initiative in volunteering to help their community on this and other projects they have worked on,” Breitigan said.

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