BHS Hosts Annual Food Drive

BHS held its annual can drive November 9th through the 22nd to help fight hunger throughout southeast Michigan. BHS students and staff have come together to donate canned foods and money to support the food drive. Many teachers bribed their students to bring food in. Teachers often handed out candy as a reward to the students who brought food or money. Classes who brought $275 worth of money received cookies baked from NHS. The first place class received a taco bar from Salsarita's and the 2nd and 3rd place classes received a pizza party. Bribing the students hopefully made them bring canned food and money to donate.
“I donated food to the food drive so I could give people the opportunity to a great Thanksgiving,” junior Keegan Tian said.
In southeast Michigan, more than 707,000 adults are food insecure, along with 200,000 children. Children are at a higher risk of hunger. At least 40% of the people served through Gleaners Food Bank are children. The largest area of concern is childhood hunger. Feeding children today is feeding the future and creating a better place for everyone. In Michigan, half of all children qualify for free or reduced-fee school lunch. With one in five kids not getting enough food regularly, child hunger remains a serious problem in southeast Michigan. When children lack access to regular, nutritious meals, they don’t have what they need to reach their fullest potential. It’s critical that people donate. Every dollar donated provides three meals.
“I donated to help those less fortunate,” sophomore Carly Scruggs said.
In fact, it is almost better to donate money, rather than cans. When people go to the grocery store, they don’t come home with a random assortment of stuff. They buy food that they like and that they know how to prepare, and that their family is will eat. A donation box with high-sodium soups could end up going to people with high blood pressure, and nuts could end up being donated to families with allergic kids. Social service providers know their clients better and, with cash in hand, can pull together items people are likely to want and let them pick what they need, cutting down on waste. Cans are great to donate, however, money is better.