Schools

Dakota Kicks Off Canned Food Drive for Kiwanis and Cougar Closet

Donations for Dakota High School's annual canned food drive will be accepted through Nov. 14.

“When was the last time you went to bed hungry?”

To raise awareness of this week’s campus-wide canned food drive, students and staff are asking friends, family and peers this very question.

For more than a decade, the Dakota campus has collected nonperishable food items and monetary donations for the Clinton Township Kiwanis Club, and more recently, the , Dakota’s own community food pantry located in the .

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Although teacher and senior class advisor Gretchen Vermiglio believes last year’s record total of 3,969 cans and $4,589 will be tough to beat, she said this year's drive is off to a good start, with more than 180 cans and $500 collected on the first day alone.

“I’m a little worried we aren’t going to make last year’s total,” she said. “That was the best canned food drive we’ve had ever.”

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So to give students even more incentive to donate, the drive has also been made a competition among third hour classes.

“The first prize is a hot breakfast for the classroom that collects the most cans or donations,” Vermiglio said.

Daily drawings throughout the week also give students who participate the opportunity to win a free lunch from the , the Dakota restaurant; gift cards to the Cougar Den, the school store; and Target gift cards.

And though only students will be eligible for these prizes, Vermiglio said she invites everyone to participate.

“I would encourage parents, even people in the community, if they want to donate, to just come over to main office and drop it off,” she said.

Donations can be made through Nov. 14.

All cans collected in the main building will be donated to the Kiwanis, while cans collected in the ninth grade center will remain there to stock the Cougar Closet. Monetary donations collected during the drive are deposited in a separate account to keep the pantry stocked not just during the holiday season, but throughout the school year.

Fast Facts

  • In Macomb County, there are 90,625 people living below the poverty level ($22,350 for a family of four). 
  • This translates into 149,519 meals missed per day. 
  • 50 percent of pantries, 255 kitchens and 24 percent of shelters turned away clients last year because they had run out of resources to give.


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