By Cassidy Johnson
The air is beginning to turn crisp, the temperature inches closer to 55 degrees, and ugly sweaters are back in stock. You know what time of year it is: the holiday season. Yet in your earnest to pull out family recipes for those holiday dinners, don’t neglect an aspect of this period just as tantamount. This is the season of giving and Apopka High School partakes in a very generous way.
Not enough students or even residents are aware that Apopka High School has its own food pantry. It’s open to those in need year round and becomes especially crucial in the fall. The Food Pantry is the small building adjacent to the front parking lot and rests between the Admin building and the tennis courts. Most of students and teachers, including me, were unaware of the purpose of this edifice.
A collaborative effort between clubs like Beta Club, the PTSA, teachers, and school officials, enables the Darter Pantry to run and feed Apopka. The effort is spear-headed by Safe Coordinator Ms. Burkhart, and AVID and Darter Success teacher Ms. Richard. When asked how she came to take on this major enterprise, Ms. Richard said it began as a challenge to her students. “A speaker came in and challenged [the students] to something. So instead of taking a day off for Martin Luther King Jr. day, they did a “Day On” of service.” Mr. Guthrie, who was principal at the time, got a group of teachers together after the speaker had presented to see what the students had come up with. Seeing that her students had an idea similar to that of Mrs. Beechum and Ms. Corkess they joined efforts to create the food pantry.
They care just as much about the quality of what they give as much as they care about giving. In the period of time where the school was on hiatus due to Hurricane Irma, the AC to the food pantry was not turned on (the distribution of AC is determined down at the County level) so volunteers are in the process of removing any food that has expired or gone bad in the excess heat. In the absence of these items, the food pantry is near full. That fact might mean more than it would another year because many Apopka families have fallen below the poverty line in the wake of Irma and the new residents that have come from Puerto Rico following Hurricane Irma. In truth, people need more than food to survive, so more than just food items are accepted as donations. Ms. Burkhart explained, “We also take donations of soaps, deodorants, toothbrushes, toothpaste–hygiene products, and book bags.” It should be noted that the PTSA and our school’s social worker Mrs. Ikeman are critical in supplying school supplies and book bags at the start of the school year. The school is actually currently low on book bags. The food pantry will accept monetary donations as well.
Anyone can get food or supplies is they ask for them; there is no application or verification process people must go through. Ms. Burkhart stated that she works to identify kids and families in need of assistance by “talking to students on a regular basis and getting to know their what their family situation is, going to her Homeless Criteria list, and by word of mouth.” The administration team and teachers may refer students to her. Ms. Burkhart encourages you to reach out to her if you know any student in need. An honor system is used; if a need is expressed students are supplied with food. School officials will try to get a student food from the food pantry by the end of the school day.
A plethora of clubs are currently collecting food for and constructing baskets for families in need. Ms. Burkhart estimates that Apopka High will make about 35-40 food baskets this year just from the food pantry. That estimate does not include the several others that be made in organizations around campus. In the past Apopka has done food drives to increase donations, however, people now can drop off items at the front desk. Not only students but families too can pick up baskets at the food pantry before school lets out for Thanksgiving Break.
It is incredibly easy for you too to participate in the selflessness this season invokes. It is also easy for you to reap the benefits of others generosity this time of year should you be in need of it. I implore you to consider donating the Apopka High Food Pantry this time of year and/or year round. Many teachers and clubs like Mr. Houvouras, Mrs. Lieffers, and Beta Club are accepting cans as they are brought in. At Christmas time more clubs and sports teams will join in on the season of giving. People are not just hungry the last few months of the year. Students do not just need school supplies in August. True generosity is a year-round trait.