SEMINOLE, Fla. — Students at Richard O. Jacobson Technical High School in Seminole packed meals on Friday for a good cause.
It was part of a service project with Rise Against Hunger. The school’s Interact Club led the effort, partnering with Rotary International of Indian Rocks Beach.
“Knowing that we get to make an impact on families and communities in general means so much to us,” said senior Isabelle Schuler.
Students manned different stations filling, weighing, sealing, then finally loading bags into boxes.
"At first it starts off slow, and then as you go like, kind of work with your peers, you kind of are in the zone and do a lot faster,” said senior Tiago Fagundez.
The goal was to pack 20,000 meals.
"They will be distributed most likely to areas like Haiti, Jamaica and maybe even the Philippines,” said principal Josh Wolfenden.
Wolfenden said they also held a canned and non-perishable food drive.
“Creating a lot of awareness around food insecurity, which I think was appropriate after the government shutdown and how many people have experienced some food insecurity from that,” said Wolfenden.
Students recognized that small steps could add up in a big way.
“It’s like giving back to the community, I guess, and just making everyone feel good,” said Fagundez.
“Knowing that I’m helping my community and like being able to see like, not physically, but know I’m putting smiles and helping children just gives me like, a sense of like, I’m doing something helpful,” said Schuler.
Share Your Story with Mary
Mary O’Connell has a primary focus on education-related stories for Tampa Bay 28. But she also keeps an eye on public health concerns and the always-changing car insurance market. Reach out to Mary to share any of your questions or concerns.
.
'It’s become a health hazard': Treasure Island targets overgrown lawns after Helene
No matter how much he’d like to forget about Hurricane Helene, Scott Baker still sees reminders on all sides of his Treasure Island home.
