Palisade students are starting to embody the holiday spirit with the several charity drives created by different clubs and organizations. In preparation for Thanksgiving, StuCo hosted their annual food drive to donate to the local Salvation Army and Kids Aid.
From November 4th to 15th, third period classes competed to collect the most high protein, non-perishable, nutritious food. The victor will be awarded a catered lunch and a teacher paid day off.
StuCo plans the drive, including advertising to encourage student participation through physical flyers and social media, counting the points, and presenting the winner. The point system consisted of; 10 points for protein rich foods, 6 points for vegetables and low sugar fruit, 4 points for Soup and Chili and healthy grains and 1 point for miscellaneous food.
Ms. Marin’s IB HL Spanish class took the W with a whopping 4,439 points. For the first couple days, Ms. Martinez’s Pre-DP Sophomores scavenged to rack up points, collecting 3,779 coming in second place. Ms. Marin passionately motivated the students to get involved, exclaiming, “Si se puede” and “Vamos a ganar”.
Junior Claribel Lopez commented, “We made every person bring at least fifteen cans of protein and we stored them secretly. We waited until the last day to showcase all our cans to avoid competition from the other teachers and students.” A key tactic to victory was stealth and mainly contributing high protein foods, like tuna and peanut butter. Blazing the path to success, Ms. Marin’s class was determined to prove themselves as the underdogs. Obviously, they accomplished just that.
Lopez concluded, “I just wanted to see Ms. Marin happy and proud of us. I really like her as a teacher and I see her as a best friend.”
The food drive has become an essential part of Palisade’s school culture, embracing generosity, community strength, and kindness. Happy Thanksgiving Bulldogs and congratulations to the victors!