The Bear Creek School’s chapter of the National Honor Society (NHS) recently sponsored a food drive for Hopelink.

This year, Bear Creek students collected 15,214 pounds of food, nearly twice the 8,200 pounds of food donated during last year’s food drive and exceeding the students’ goal to bring in five tons of food in five days.

Bear Creek NHS members posted signs and placed bins near all the classroom doors and then collected the donations each day and delivered the food to Hopelink’s food bank in Redmond. Many Upper School students went “Trick-or-Canning” on Halloween night, accepting cans of food instead of candy and delivering the food directly to school later that evening.

In order to encourage donations, the NHS sponsored a contest to see which house and/or class could bring in the most cans per capita. In the Upper School, Anthansius House led the way delivering 2,751 items (61 items per student) to help the hungry people in Redmond. There was participation from all grades — preschool through grade 12.

In conjunction with the food drive, children’s author Lois Brandt spoke at assemblies to students in grades K-6 about her book, “Maddi’s Fridge,” a story that deals with childhood hunger. Brandt encouraged students to both help feed those in need and fight to tell the stories that are dear to their hearts.

Additionally, for a month, Bear Creek middle school students assembled treat bags for the 300-plus families who shop at Hopelink in Redmond each week. Each advisory group decided on a theme and designed the bags, organized and decorated the bags and then collected donations and assembled the treat bags. One representative from each advisory traveled to Hopelink’s facility in Redmond to deliver the 350-plus treat bags.