Ten points for a can of soup, five points for a box of pasta or a jar of peanut butter, and one week of rigorous competition. From December 12th to 15th, students at Cannon Falls Elementary raced to rack up points by donating items to this year’s food drive, facilitated by the local branch of the Minnesota Honor Society. 

Students at the elementary school were encouraged to collect dry goods, canned food, and other non-perishable items and bring them to school. Each classroom had a collection box for the children’s edible donations and, at the end of each day, a high school MHS member collected and counted all the donated items. A running total was kept for each classroom, transforming the otherwise mundane drive into a heated competition as each class attempted to out-donate the next. At the end of the week, all the food items were gathered, weighed, and transported to the Cannon Falls Food Shelf — which distributed the items throughout the community.  

To no surprise, halfway through the week, Minnesotan winter weather attempted to throw a wrench in the plans. A snowy Tuesday night resulted in school closure at both the high school and elementary school on Wednesday. The drive was crunched from five days to four, limiting the time available for collecting and counting. However, MHS advisor Kirsten Hoffman remained optimistic about the drive: “Parents made special trips to school to help their students donate. The Cannon Falls Food Shelf is in such need, and they are very flexible, so it worked well to finish collecting and counting the next week after the snow days.”

The Minnesota Honor Society is a collection of high school juniors and seniors that strive to service their community during their time in the club. Students complete an application and then are selected based on their academic achievements and role in their community. MHS members are required to complete ten hours of community service each semester of school and five hours over the summer. The organization teaches students to live along its four pillars: service, character, scholarship, and citizenship. Being in the society is an incredible achievement for any student and is an impressive addition to college and scholarship applications. 

Although MHS members complete a plethora of acts of service throughout the year, the food drive is one of their biggest. MHS vice-president Randi Hanson expressed her satisfaction with the event: “I think the drive was a total success. We raised so much food and it felt great to help my community.” In total, the drive yielded over 1300 pounds of food and 150 pounds of toiletries, each ounce unimaginably helpful for someone in need.