Jesuit High Students Deliver More than 280 Thanksgiving Meals

TAMPA, FL — Jesuit High School’s annual Thanksgiving Basket Drive culminates this Sunday as Jesuit students make and deliver a drive-record 280 abundant Thanksgiving meals to local families in need.

On the Sunday morning before Thanksgiving, as is custom every year, Jesuit students and
family members celebrate Mass on campus at 10 a.m. Afterward, at 11 a.m. Sunday,
everyone gathers in the cafeteria for brunch and to prepare the “baskets” – large
cardboard boxes packed with everything needed for a complete Thanksgiving
meal for a large family. Each basket contains a frozen turkey, cooking pans, stuffing,
potatoes, rice, apple sauce, rolls, vegetables, gravy and more. At noon, the baskets will
be delivered to families at seven local Boys & Girls Clubs and the Migrant
Education Program.

Jesuit’s director of community service, Andy Wood, launched the drive at
Convocation in late October, challenging the students to raise more than $400 in each
homeroom via weekly collections – enough to guarantee that Jesuit would deliver a
combined 280 Thanksgiving baskets.

The students responded by raising $13,869, which was combined with funds generated on Homecoming Fun Day and a Mothers’ Club bake sale to bulk purchase all the food, as well as a
Walmart gift card for each basket.

The turkeys were supplied by the Jesuit Dads’ Club, which collected the 10- to 14-pound
frozen turkeys this week from the school community through collections during morning
drop-off and afternoon pick-up, achieving its goal of more than 300 turkeys.