With the support of her community, one Mohawk Trail Regional School student was able to raise more than $1,800 to benefit a local food pantry.
“One thing I feel like I’ve really learned from this is you don’t always see what problems the community has, but they’re always there,” said Shelburne resident Sophia Goodnow, 14. “Being a part of what’s going on — just knowing how your community is being affected — that’s been important to me.”
As part of a service project for Project 351 — an organization that brings together one eighth-grade “ambassador” from each of the state’s 351 municipalities for a year of service and leadership — Goodnow raised $1,810. She recently delivered the money to the Hilltown Churches Food Pantry, which operates out of the First Congregational Church on Main Street in Ashfield.
Throughout the year, Goodnow said, Project 351 invites the ambassadors to participate in different service projects. In September, for example, she participated in a service project for 9/11, for which she created rocks to remember the people who died.
For this service project — the final one of the year — the student ambassadors learned about hunger and were tasked with leading an effort in their community that would address hunger locally.
“For whatever reason, I was like, ‘I never knew about this,’” Goodnow said of food insecurity. “It was a big problem. I had no idea this was going on.”
In particular, she learned how food pantries are struggling to keep up with increased demand as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“People have been really struggling to have enough money to go around,” Goodnow said.
She decided to raise money for the Hilltown Churches Food Pantry, for which she had done food drives and collections in the past.
“The pantry (serves) a bunch of different towns, which I found important,” she said. “I was asking my school community to raise money … so I wanted to include as many towns as possible.”
Starting with a post on social media, she collected donations between Nov. 29 and Dec. 11.
Carla Potts, director of communications for the Mohawk Trail Regional School District, said Goodnow’s project addresses an issue that existed before the pandemic, but has been exacerbated because of it.
“I think it’s so important to showcase the kind of caring, community outreach that our students really have,” Potts said. “Teenagers really get such a bad rap. People think ‘Oh, they have to do these community service projects.’ … But we are so lucky to live in an area where our students are really caring and kind, and they give back to their community, continually.”
Potts said she “applauds” Goodnow, who has joined the alumni group of Project 351.
“Not only as an ambassador,” Potts said, “but really as a community member who is really giving back when we’ve seen such an incredible need.”
Mary Byrne can be reached at mbyrne@recorder.com or 413-930-4429. Twitter: @MaryEByrne