The Cannon Falls, Minnesota Honor Society(MHS) chapter held a food and essential items drive at the Cannon Falls Elementary School during the week of December 8th through the 12th. The food drive is held to help the community, as well as a competition for the elementary schoolers. Overall, 1,050 pounds of food were donated, plus many essential items were donated in the end.
Elementary students received a list the week prior to the food drive and were heavily encouraged to donate what they could. Each item donated was worth five or ten points. Throughout each day, MHS students would count, sort, and keep track of points for each class. After all the food was collected, it was brought to the food shelf located in the basement of First English Lutheran Church. Minnesota Honor Society advisor Kirsten Hoffman stated that “The food shelf in Cannon Falls provides for over 200 families in the community, which is why it’s so important.” The event supports not only families in general, but also those much closer to home. Lisa Peterson’s class won the competition and did a great job at donating the most to help the local community. The second-grade class received Hershey’s kisses, and the top class from each grade received candy canes.
The food and essential items drive is a simple and easy way to make a large impact. The elementary students work to earn points, with most of them not realizing that they are playing an important role in the community. Chair of the food drive committee, Chloe Merchlewitz, remarked that her favorite part of the food drive is “Getting kids involved and getting to see how much food we collect and knowing it greatly affects many families.” Overall, the food drive helps take something simple and turns it into something that makes a lasting impact on the community.
The food and essential items drive is an amazing way for MHS students to make an impact in the community around the holidays and is one of their biggest events of the year. The food drive also allows high school and elementary students to come together to make their community a better place. MHS students work not only during the holiday months but throughout the entire year to make an impact with acts of service.
