Schools are asked to help
with annual food drive
Detective Edward George of the South Brunswick Police Department explains to Girl Scout Troop No. 1558 what it is like to be a detective. The Girl Scouts visited police headquarters on Monday as part of their merit badge project. Groups that would like a tour of the police department may call (732) 329-4000, ext. 449. PHOTO COURTESY OF THE SOUTH BRUNSWICK POLICE DEPARTMENT
The Middlesex County organization that supplies local food banks and soup kitchens is asking all public and private schools in the county to get involved in the seventh annual spring school food drive.
"We’ve sent letters to all the superintendents and to the principals at each school, asking them to let their students and staff take part in this effort," said Middlesex County Freeholder Jane Z. Brady, who chairs the food drive and founded the Middlesex County Food Organization and Outreach Distribution Services (MCFOODS).
Between Feb. 25 and March 8, students and teachers at participating schools will collect soup, cereal, pasta, rice, canned meat, fruit and vegetables, and personal hygiene and baby care items.
The food will be deposited in bins provided by the Middlesex County Improvement Authority (MCIA) and transported to the MCFOODS warehouse in New Brunswick where it will be sorted by volunteers and distributed to more than 40 food pantries and soup kitchens throughout the county.
During last year’s drive, participants at 105 schools collected more than 31 tons of food. Schools involved in the 2001 drive included public elementary, middle and high schools, preschools and day care centers, parochial and private schools, several county vo-tech schools and adult schools.
"Participation is voluntary and the decision to participate is left to the principal at each school," said county Superintendent of Schools Mary Jean Guidette. "But it is a wonderful opportunity for the children to learn that we all have a responsibility to help our neighbors and give something back to our communities."
Brady said donations are badly needed this year, given the economic downturn.
"Many families in our county are having a tough time, and the organizations that distribute the food tell us that they are serving more and more people every week," she said.
She asked parents to encourage administrators at their children’s schools to participate in the drive.
For more information, call MCFOODS at (732) 729-0880.
County residents may donate canned and nonperishable food items year-round at MCFOODS drop-off sites, which include the public libraries in Milltown, Monroe, North Brunswick, Dunellen, Edison, Plainsboro, South Brunswick and Woodbridge, and other county food pantries.
MCFOODS would also like to hear from local companies willing to sponsor annual two-week food drives at their facilities in Middlesex County. The organization’s goal is to have at least one corporate food drive each month in order to sustain the local food pantries.