BELCHERTOWN — The giving spirit has jumped off the pages of “A Christmas Carol” and filled the hallways of Jabish Brook Middle School through a biweekly food pickup for students in need.
Each year, English teacher Jennifer Poli designs service projects that bridge the gap between literature and community action. When her seventh-grade classes began last year, she integrated public service into her lessons on Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol,” using Ebenezer Scrooge’s transformation from a miser to a philanthropist to inspire her students’ own generosity.
“All seventh-grade students are writing an essay about how Scrooge is a dynamic character, so how he changes from being selfish to selfless,” Poli said. “So we’re having discussions about how we’re putting that into practice at school, that we’re showing generosity and kindness toward others with this project that’s ongoing.”
While Poli’s service projects typically consist of immediate, short-term contributions — such as food drives or correspondence with veterans — the rising cost of living prompted a shift this year toward a more substantial and sustained community impact.
For the last two months, Jabish Brook Middle School students have regularly popped into Adjustment Counselor Diane Outhuse’s room to collect some baked goods, which were donated by Panera Bread in Hadley. Some grab a pastry as an afternoon snack, while others take home a loaf of bread or bag of bagels. All the donations are sorted and packaged by students.
Poli reached out to Panera and asked if the business was interested in helping the school set up the regular donation through the end of December. Some of her former students also work there and helped supply some extra plastic bags.
“It’s very time consuming, especially days where we get multiple boxes of items,” Poli said.
Panera’s contributions fluctuated daily; some deliveries brought overflowing bags of fresh loaves, while others included multiple crates of baked goods. Over the course of the project, Poli estimates that students collected more than 40 boxes of food, leaving nothing behind.
The food pickup is open to all students to ensure students in need maintain anonymity and dignity. Hundreds of students took advantage of the opportunity. However, Poli has worked with the counseling staff to identify high-priority families who can place special orders.
“I wanted to make it open to everyone, so people don’t have to announce I need this loaf of bread to bring home for my family. They can just go and take it,” Poli said.
It took a village to set up, prepare and run the food pickup, she said. Students helped Poli brainstorm ways to organize the program, which then went through the school administration for approval. Outhuse not only helps to identify families in need, but also uses her room as the pickup station. Fellow teachers and Assistant Principal Sarah Strout monitor the line of students.
“It’s important as a school community, or just community in general, to look at ways in which we can help support each other,” Poli said. “A lot of people really stepped up to help, some with me asking, some without me asking, and that’s what’s made it go so well.”