Throughout the month of November through Dec. 1, the MTHS community comes together to collect money and donate non-perishable canned and boxed food for those in need. Food will be collected up until Dec. 1 from each advisory class to donate to Mountlake Terrace’s local food bank, Concern for Neighbors.
Organized and run by ASB, this annual food drive has helped over 100 families every year get through the winter months. As the food bank relies heavily on MTHS to help the community, the last year has been a struggle for many families and the community as a whole, so this event offers an opportunity for students and our school to help out this season.
This year, demand is expected to double due to the pandemic, so it’s especially important to donate to the community, as food banks are an important part of our safety net systems. Through online learning and an isolating pandemic, our community has been through it together, and will continue to rise and grow together as well.
“[I hope that we’re] still successful, and that people remember that we still have Terrace Hawk spirit to help the community,” Principal Greg Schellenberg said.
Typically, MTHS provides 5,000-10,000 pounds of non-perishables to Concern for Neighbors. The goal for this year, according to ASB adviser Jeannie Brzovic, is to have 5,000-7,500 pounds of non-perishables donated this year in addition to cash donations from parents and students.
The ASB has been trying to bring attention to the food drive online and through social media with the MTHS Instagram account, posting updates and seeing students repost them on their stories. They’ve also been setting up and making posters to hang up throughout the halls of the school.
Typically, there are competitions between clubs and classes to help encourage students to donate, the winner getting a prize. This year has been no different, with multiple competitions being implemented that offer rewards of different scales to incentivize student donations. One of these competitions was between freshman and sophomore advisory classes, whichever class collecting the most donations on Tuesday, Nov. 16 getting a food prize.
Donation bins this year are to be set up in front of the local QFC for the community to help do their part. Online donations have also been set up to collect money in a way that’s more convenient for some. There will also be a ‘one-day blitz’ to collect as much food and donations as the school can in a single day, but the date is still to be determined.
To get more families and parents involved, there was a drive-through food drive on Saturday, Nov. 13 where anyone in the community could drive by the MTHS parking lot and drop off food and any possible donations to help support the cause.
Additionally, each year MTHS competes with Lynnwood H.S. in an effort to collect more food and money for our communities. Last year’s competition was a bit complicated, as Terrace won by the deadline, but Lynnwood extended their deadline and ended up beating Terrace in the end. ASB hopes that this year, we can pull through to beat them after our loss at the homecoming game.
Not only does this annual event serve as a competition between rival schools, but also a competition between graduating classes as well as individual advisory classes. By the end of the food drive, the class with the most donated cans and money will be awarded $300 to put toward their senior prom. As students bring more cans to their advisory classes, the individual class that collects the most cans will also be receiving a donut and hot cocoa party provided by the school.
With a couple weeks still remaining to donate, it’s critical that students and other members in the community do all that they can to contribute to the food drive, whether that be by bringing in cans, donating money or encouraging others to do the same.
