Johnston High School Students Hunt for Canned Goods Tuesday Night

Johnston High School students are on a hunt tonight.

The JHS student council is once again sponsoring the Scavenger Hunt for Canned Goods.

The annual event sends teams of four people into local neighborhoods to collect canned goods and other nonperishable items, said Emma Henry, senior and event organizer.

"You go door to door and ask people if they are willing to donate," she said. "The people sometimes know we're coming. We put up posters at Dahl's for people to see and we have it in the Johnston newsletter and the Infinite Campus site for parents."

All the food collected will go to the Des Moines Area Religious Council food pantry, she said.

"We go to different areas around town, usually around the elementary, middle and high schools," she said.

While students are still signing up to help, Henry said there should be at least 20 teams scouring the neighborhoods from 6 to 8 p.m.

The teams receive points for each item collected, but some items, like cereal bars, are worth more than, say a can of peas, Henry said.

"It went really well last year," she said. "People are very supportive in this community and were more than happy to donate."

The group is also asking residents if they have extra turkeys and hams to donate for the Thanksgiving holiday.

"We know that holidays are a great time to help out and with Thanksgiving coming we want to make sure every Johnston family has the opportunity to have a nice dinner," she said.

Students will be out tonight from 6 to about 8 p.m. collecting goods.