Committed to helping play a part in stopping world hunger, the Smithfield-Selma High School football team recently teamed up off the field to package 10,000 meals for “Stop Hunger Now,” a local non-profit international organization.
Wearing their Spartan jerseys and white hairnets, the players greeted the box truck filled with all the necessary ingredients to prep thousands of meals for those in need around the world. Once everything was unloaded and arranged, the team was strategically formed into small assembly groups and directed on how to package, weigh, seal, and box each meal.
“It’s great to see that a football team is helping kids all over the world,” said Aaron Proctor, event facilitator for Stop Hunger Now. “It’s not that often we see students dedicating their Saturday to help those who are a world apart. It is fantastic to see the Spartan Team come together.”
Whether students were labeling boxes, weighing packages, or sealing the finished product, the Spartan football players and coaches diligently worked to meet their goal of 10,000 meals within two hours. Throughout the morning, the team periodically heard the strike of a gong, marking every one thousand meals they packaged and boxed. Every time the gong was struck, the Spartan players cheered as they worked together to reach their goal.
“It was really exciting to know we were on our way to reaching our goal,” said Antonio McDaniel, Spartan football player. “It was a real team effort to package, weigh, and box 10,000 meals.”
In all, the students, with help from the community, raised the necessary $2,900 needed to fund the team’s service learning project. While this is just the first of many community projects the team looks forward to participating in, the Spartans felt a sense of pride knowing they were doing their part in combating world hunger.
“It was a great opportunity for us to give back to those who are less fortunate around the world,” said Austin Blackmon, Spartan football player. “It really brought us closer to the cause and I look forward to participating in more service learning projects next year.”
Sharing the same sentiment, SSS Head Football Coach Wes Hill added that he is thrilled with the work the team has done with the project.
“I am very proud of our kids and the efforts they put forth at this event,” said Hill. “Our players recognized the need not only locally but worldwide and wanted to be part of the solution.”
