By MEGHAN DURBAK
For the past month, Sadie Brown has been spending her free time calling businesses for donations and arranging canned goods on shelves. Her efforts are aimed at opening a food pantry at Taylor High School by mid-December.
“Our superintendent came to me and asked me if I would be interested in starting a service project,” said the high school sophomore. She said she thought about a food pantry because she felt it could help out more students than any other service.
Brown, along with five other students and staff members, is working on the project as a part of HEROES, or Helping Everyone Reach Out and Engaging Service, a new high school program that involves students in community service.
HEROES advisor Dee Marler said this pantry will specifically benefit Taylor students and their families. Though Howard County has many food pantries, Marler said this would be more personal and help families that might otherwise slip through the cracks.
“They wanted to start a food pantry because they saw a need of a lot of kids who get breakfast and lunch provided for them, and then they go home,” he said. “... we aren’t sure whether they get a good meal in the evenings or on the weekends.”
Brown said the pantry will be “more personal” than other facilities.
“We’re focusing on our people,” she said. “We want to help Taylor families.”
It’s not all food products, Marler said. The school is also collecting paper products and toiletries, including toilet paper, soap, toothpaste and shampoo. He is expecting this program to help 10 to 15 families year-round.
“Guidance counselors and the principals know a lot more about the situations than the teachers,” he explained. “We’re relying on them to give us needs of families.”
He added students and their families will maintain their anonymity.
“The students will prepare the food products in groups and they’ll be delivered by a member of the corporation,” he said.
Marler said the first drop off was originally set for Dec. 5, but has now been pushed back to Dec. 19. He said the donations will be delivered directly to the homes.
So far, the program has collected canned goods from food drives at the primary, intermediate and middle schools. However, the organization is seeking food and monetary donations as well as more volunteers.
Brown said she would like to see more students get involved at Taylor and other schools.
“It would be a really cool thing if every school in our township had this, especially some of the bigger schools like Western and Kokomo,” she said. “It would help them a lot, too.”
Marler said residents can drop off donations at the school corporation office or call him at (765) 455-5186, ext. 201. Checks can be written to the Taylor School Corp., specifying the food pantry. Marler said his organization is hoping to partner with a local church to get food products through the Lafayette Food Bank at a lower rate.
He said any support would be helpful.
“We’re looking for anything and everything,” he said.
