MSJ students help out Rutland families in need during annual Stuff-A-Bus
Rachel Gregory '21
This year the Marble Valley Regional Transit District hosted the annual Stuff-A-Bus event, a fundraiser that encourages the people of Rutland have a chance to give back to the community. People are encouraged to donate non-perishable food items that go toward local food shelves such as Community Cupboard, BROC, and The Salvation Army. Donations that are accepted during this fundraising event include non-perishables, monetary donations, and anything else that can help the people of the community. The food that is collected during Stuff-A-Bus helps out local families who are struggling to get by, putting food on the table during the holiday season.
The people of MSJ never hesitate when the time comes to help out the people in our community; for years we have helped to raise money and collect food around the holidays. Each year at the beginning of November, students and faculty members of both Mount St. Joseph Academy and Christ the King School participate in Stuff-A-Bus, competing to see which school can contribute the most non-perishable food items in the first two weeks of November. Above all, it is a group effort with both schools to see how much food and money can be raised in a short amount of time to give back to our community.
After approximately two weeks, both students and faculty members donated over 2,500 food items, exceeding the school record for contributions for Stuff-A-Bus. Last Friday afternoon, a group of MSJ students volunteered at Price Chopper to “stuff the buses” with all of the food that was collected, loading the contributions from MSJ, as well as a few other schools and parishes. Persevering through the chilly weather, members of Student Government, ambassadors of the school, and other members of our school community all came together to lend a helping hand when the time came to load the food onto the buses.
Then on Saturday morning, a handful of students volunteered to assist the Knights of Columbus with loading food donations from Christ the King Parish onto the buses at Price Chopper, as well as unloading food from the buses at Rutland Community Cupboard and BROC well into the afternoon. From collecting the food, to loading the food on the buses, to bringing it to the food shelves, members of the MSJ community took part in each step of the process, staying involved in helping out our community. MSJ would like to thank all who made donations and volunteered throughout the whole process, giving back to those in need.