Rotary Interact club members at Coral Shores High School are hoping to stock the shelves of a food pantry throughout the summer for fellow students. The community is invited to help them achieve their goal this weekend outside Winn-Dixie in Tavernier.
Senior Mya Rodriguez and fellow Interact students will gather food and donations to stock the high school pantry from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday, April 9, and Sunday, April 10. Rodriguez, the Interact fundraising chair, said index cards placed throughout the store will let shoppers know the items the club is looking to obtain to benefit students when school’s out for the summer. Items include everything from canned products, like soup and Chef Boyardee, to chips and popcorn.
“If people see the index card and are feeling like they want to help, they can grab something and leave it by the table with a sign explaining what we are and what we are doing,” she said. “Following the food drive, student volunteers will drive the items to the school.”
The school’s food pantry supports students who are in need of items that they otherwise might not be able to get. The pantry served those in need following Hurricane Irma in 2017 and throughout the COVID-19 pandemic. Interact members, with help from the community, have worked to keep the shelves stocked throughout the school year. And they’re hoping to keep the pantry plentiful when school’s out in late May.
Last November, Interact students stationed outside Winn-Dixie collected shopping carts full of grocery items thanks to generous community members.
“You wouldn’t think about it that much, but kids go to school from 7 in the morning until 3,” Rodriguez said. “Students have to wait 11 to 12 to get breakfast, so most of the kids stop by the pantry and grab a bag of chips or a can of soup. They can eat it in school when they’re hungry before or after lunch.”
Students also stop by the food pantry after school and grab some items to eat.
“It’s little by little,” she said. “It’s not someone who takes a little bit of everything, but it’s someone who takes something.”
Those wishing to donate food or monetary donations can also contact the school office at 305-853-3222.
