Unit 5 and UFEA (Unit 5 Education Association) recently partnered up to run a non-perishable food drive to support students and families that are in need.
Students and families could drop their items off to any Unit 5 school anytime between November 5 and 21.
Non-perishable foods were asked to be donated: foods such as cereal, oatmeal, granola bars, pancake mix and syrup, peanut butter and jelly, crackers, mac and cheese cups, pasta and sauce, canned chicken or tuna, ramen, or fruit cups.
These items do not spoil as quickly as others and can be stored at room temperature, helping families with long-lasting ways to feed the family.
A representative from UFEA collected the items in order to mail them all out to Unit 5 families in need.
“We’ve just been putting the food items into the staff mail room, and then they’re picked up so that we can donate to the bigger picture of what’s happening in all of Unit 5,” West principal Dr. Angie Codron explained.
Although the donations were handed out to Unit 5 families in need, they were also used to help re-stock the in-school pantry that’s located at Kingsley Junior High.
This pantry is available to families and allows them to shop for food that they need.
Unit 5 has always been big on helping the ones in need and supporting this food drive is something that district families love doing.
Unit 5 Superintendent, Dr. Kristen Weikle expressed how much the food drive meant for the community and being able to see it come together to help families in the district.
“I’m always in awe of our community and the graciousness of how people support our schools because that doesn’t happen everywhere,” Weikle noted.
With the massive success of the drive, it would be no surprise to see more events like these in the future.
“I mean, this was kind of the first time we really did it, but who knows, maybe we’ll do it again in the future because unfortunately, we’re always going to have some families who could use some additional support,” Dayna Brown, Unit 5’s Director of Communications and Community Relations, explained.
One thing is for certain: supporting families during harsh times is highly important to the Unit 5 community.
With the uncertainty of SNAP benefits, the rising costs of groceries, among other challenges that many families face today, creating events that help the community is highly influential.
