As Thanksgiving approaches, students from East Meadow High School’s Key Club are taking a hands-on approach to fight hunger. The Key Club, a young people’s division of the Kiwanis Club, is collecting food donations as a part of its annual fall food drive.
The club will take collections outside the ShopRite in Uniondale on Nov. 15 and 16. To donate, go shopping and pass along any goods you can spare to the team anytime between 9 a.m. and 2 p.m.
Annabel Yee is the Key Club President for EMHS, leading about 150 students to engage in community service events.
“It gives students an opportunity to show up — not just to volunteer, but also experience the community,” she said. “It’s really not too hard to get that many volunteers, because everyone is always really eager to help out, which is very exciting to see.”
Yee’s advisor, Catherine Razzano, serves as the Chair of Kiwanis Food Drives. The benefits of working with a different generation run both ways, she said.
“Annabelle was extremely shy when I first met her,” she said. “She has brought the Key Club to an electronic age, which is amazing.”
There are 118 families who will receive donations from the food drive.
“It’s paramount that, while our youth get involved, our entire community gets involved in just a few days of service,” Razzano said.
This year’s food drive has become more necessary as hungry households deal with the uncertain future of federal SNAP benefits. At the time this article was published, the federal government announced that a portion of SNAP funding will be restored, with a delay. According to the Department of Agriculture, 39 percent of SNAP’s beneficiaries are under age 18.
“All of the proceeds here are going to families who might have even less resources this year because the government is in gridlock,” Yee explained. “It’s extra important that people try to donate if they can, whether it’s food or money, so we can really help those that are experiencing hardship even worse than years prior.”
The Kiwanis Club organizes two seasonal food drives each year: one in the spring and one in the fall. Proceeds from the latter will support community pantries.
Volunteers will accept sealed food items and ingredients as well as gift cards to purchase perishable items like dairy products, fresh meat, and vegetables. Their goal is to provide families in need in East Meadow with at least three bags of food.
On Nov. 21, students from all grades will sort the food into packages prepared for distribution. The next day, they will deliver the packages to families.
Capping off the Thanksgiving festivities is the Frank Saracino Memorial Senior and Military Dinner at East Meadow High School on Nov. 23.
“This is one of our biggest weekends of giving in support of our community,” Kiwanis Club President Donna Goldstein said. “We touch everyone from senior citizens to the military, to our families in our schools.”
The dinner will feature live entertainment, stuffed turkey, and an opportunity to hear the stories of East Meadow’s senior community members.
“We’re a very big community organization,” Goldstein said. “It is important to us, in the season of giving, to help as many people as we can… And with SNAP being cut, I think the need for it is going to be pushed to a new level.”
Last year, volunteers collected a record number of non-perishable food items. The drive also collected enough monetary donations to provide 55 gift cards to purchase perishable items, and Kiwanis covered the cost for an additional 100 gift cards, distributed to more than 150 households in need.
The Kiwanis Club of East Meadow is involved in community events all year long. For more information about upcoming events and how to donate, visit k03823.site.kiwanis.org.
