4.5 Tons of Food Donated by Parker School

Parker School in Waimea has collected and donated 4.5 tons of food to the Kokua Christian Ministries’ food pantry in Waimea. Students at the school collected the non-perishable food over the course of several weeks.

The food was donated on Nov. 26, the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. On this day, students from grades 6 through 8 also volunteered in the community, performing various community service activities throughout Waimea.

“Our students not only contributed cans of food, they contributed a lot of time and hard work to make a difference in other people’s lives,” said Jessie Marshall, Parker English teacher and student council advisor. “I’m particularly proud of the middle school, which every year puts forth a tremendous effort to collect cans and help our community.”

The community service tasks ranged from cleanup, maintenance, and other tasks at Kahilu Theatre, Parker Ranch, the Waikoloa Stream, Waimea Trails and Greenways, Anna Ranch, Thelma Parker Library, St. James Episcopal Church, and the Parker School campus.

Students from kindergarten through twelfth grade, along with staff, faculty, and families, then gathered together to celebrate what the school calls “‘Ohana Day.” Students viewed the fully loaded trucks and trailers filled with items destined for the food pantry.

Parker Middle School students in grades 6 through 8 brought in a large majority of the food for the third year in a row, while the upper school’s student council took care of all of the last-minute counting of the food, loading it, and delivering it to the Kokua Christian Ministries’ food pantry.

Parker School’s efforts to give back to the community have become an annual event. School officials say that for the past three years at Thanksgiving time, the school has focused on giving back to the community.