Touchdown for the kids at Cider Mill School!
This year, Cider Mill began a new tradition they dubbed the “Souper Bowl.” For the two weeks leading up to the Super Bowl, the typical pre-game hype took on a different look at the school as students were encouraged to bring in donations for the Wilton Food Pantry at Comstock Community Center. Children arrived each morning with bags filled with cans, boxes, and bottles.
Each donated item brought in by a student counted as a vote for he or she could cast for their favorite team. Donations were checked in each morning, and each afternoon administrators announced which team was leading the voting.
Students donated non-perishable food items and personal care items like soap, shampoo, toothpaste, and deodorant, earning votes with each one. Of course, they were encouraged to vote early and vote often. Over the two week donation period, Cider Mill collected over 1,500 items. Students picked the Philadelphia Eagles as Cider Mill’s Souper Bowl winning team, predicting the actual Super Bowl winner too.
Last Friday, Feb. 2, Wilton Social Services sent a truck to pick up the donations at Cider Mill and bring them up the hill to the Food Pantry at Comstock. February is typically a month when the pantry shelves are sparse, and Cider Mill’s efforts helped to fill their shelves during this time of heightened need. While the Eagles won the football game, the real winners were the people who are helped by the generous donations to the food pantry–and the kids who learned how important it is to lend a hand to those in need in the community.
The “extra point” earned was when the Cider Mill School community had a little bit of fun while supporting those in need in the wider Wilton one.