The positive psychology class is hosting a Kids Against Hunger event for volunteers to help package meals for Ukraine, Haiti and San Jose on Nov. 9.
Senior Michael Vass, who is in the positive psychology class, had the idea to work with the Kids Against Hunger program (KAH) after a unit in class about the effects of acts of kindness.
Vass looked toward his church to find volunteering organizations to partner with and learned about the KAH volunteering service.
“Kids Against Hunger seemed to be like a good fit for us because you could set up the events and one of the other schools in the district did it,” Vass said.
Positive psychology teacher Christina Haaverson oversees the KAH event and lets her students vote on where to send meals. This year, students decided to distribute the meals to Ukraine, Haiti and San Jose. Volunteers will contribute $20 each to pay for ingredients and pack them in the cafeteria.
“It’s amazing what happens when we give kids an opportunity to shine,” Haaverson said.
Some students volunteered to pack food this year out of the kindness in their hearts.
“I wanted to do something kind to help someone out,” junior Zaid Sharifi, who signed up for the event, said.
Students such as junior Charlotte Yamada saw the event as an opportunity to get into volunteering and helping people.
“I like the thought of helping others, especially since I don’t usually volunteer,” Yamada said.
This isn’t the first time the positive psychology students organized and volunteered for this service. Last year, the students focused on distributing meals to Ukraine and garnered support from many students and teachers. Volunteers worked together to pack almost 15,000 meals for people in Ukraine.
“People would be at different stations doing different things, like scooping, weighing,” Vass said. “I ended up moving bags to stations to fill ingredients that would go into bags.”
Senior Sienna Lewis, who has volunteered with KAH before, said she enjoyed the experience and the way the organization lets volunteers directly manage supplies.
“I did an event like this with KAH in the past with Girl Scouts and it was fun,” Lewis said. “I also liked KAH because usually companies like this don’t give resources straight to volunteers, but KAH does.”
Last year, positive psychology students also raised $420 for ingredients from teachers who couldn’t attend but supported the cause. This year the class hopes to garner the same support for the event.
“[Volunteering last year] gave them joy and it was fun giving back to the community and the world around them,” Haaverson said.
In order to continue with the event this year, the class must have 100 sign-ups before the date of service, Haaverson said. About 120-150 students came last year, including some who had not registered.
“Some kids came at the door because friends were there,” Haaverson said. “Last year there were whole families that wanted to give back to others, so we had grandparents and little siblings all packing food.”
Added junior Samantha Gee, “[The KAH event] is a good opportunity to give back, and it’s an opportunity to incorporate people into the community.”