For the eighth grade’s first day of Intensive Learning, we focused on our Service Learning topic: Food Insecurity. We spent the morning watching a CBS compilation about food insecurity. This broadened our perspectives on how this issue affects different communities throughout the country.
“This information was a bit of a shock. They talked about how people making 6 figures are struggling with food insecurity. They also talked about how there are thousands of college students also struggling. This made me realize just how fortunate we all are and how important it is that we help.” -Abby M.
We then got to hear from a visitor from Cathedral Kitchen where we learned about all the important work Cathedral Kitchen does for their communities, as well as how we as 8th graders would be helping this afternoon! We also learned about potential volunteer opportunities for the future in order to continue making a difference in our community.
After enjoying lunch together, we split into groups for the afternoon with one group heading to drop off all the donations our Middle School community has collected during our food drive this month. At First Baptist Church in Moorestown, we learned about a food pantry that serves our local community and all the ongoing work they do to help people in need.
“The news segment on food insecurity made me feel a little frustrated … COVID only brought our attention to food insecurity. It was here before COVID, and it’s still here. Just because COVID is ‘gone’ doesn’t mean food insecurity is too.” -Sadie Guzman
While one group experienced the First Baptist Church’s food pantry, the other group got to work making sandwiches to donate to Cathedral Kitchen! We made Peanut Butter and Jelly, Turkey and Cheese, and Ham and Cheese sandwiches to donate. We switched groups halfway through and ended the day with a grand total of 579 sandwiches!
“To help this problem we need to be interdependent with each other and work in our communities to stop this problem.” -Blessin Browne
After a wonderful first day spent giving back to our communities and thinking about different ways we can contribute to making the world around us a better place, we can’t wait to head off to Camp Mason tomorrow and see what the rest of this week brings!