The November Harvest Drive is hosted every year by clubs and organizations at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School from Oct. 21 to Nov. 12. Donations are collected from a range of clubs, extracurriculars and organizations.

Westglades Middle School serves as the distribution center for food deliveries. Donations must be at Westglades by Friday, Nov. 15. The collected food will be sent out to local families in the district facing food insecurity, especially during the holiday season where meals are a big part of traditions for families.

The key goal of the Harvest Drive is to provide food items for the upcoming holiday season for less fortunate families and individuals in the area. Broward County Public Schools host a district-wide Harvest Drive every year.

Organizations such as DECA designate classes to collect certain items in order to assemble as many food baskets as possible. All four DECA teachers, Albert Mitchell, Sharon Cutler, Lisa Webster and Dean Broadbent, created a list of what items each teacher collects by class period.

“I donated cereal for the harvest drive through DECA,” sophomore Michelle Ross said. “I think it’s really touching and meaningful to donate because it will help those less fortunate.”

DECA also benefits those who donate by giving them DECA diamonds for their participation in the drive. DECA diamonds are used as extra credit every quarter.

Regardless, donations were considered as club hours for numerous MSD associations, from National Honor Society to Red Cross, a medical club.

“I think [the Harvest Drive is] an extremely important thing to pass on to younger generations and I do it with my own children, as well as my students,” Red Cross club advisor Dawn Tavares said.

The drive’s donations are all non-perishable “Thanksgiving” items like cornbread mix, canned cranberry sauce and mac and cheese.

Student Government Association teacher Danielle Driscoll manages the collection and distribution of all packaged goods and food items from the MSD student body. With the help of SGA students, MSD organizes and prepares all donations for drop-off at Westglades.

“[The Harvest Drive] is an activity that is handed out by the district and it helps benefit students in your actual school zone,” Driscoll said.

Overall, the Harvest Drive will continue annually at MSD. The activity creates a lasting impact for those less fortunate in the area, while educating students on the importance of giving. Although the event has ended, the holiday spirit of the initiative will continue to live on in the Thanksgiving season.