Students were in a flurry of activity in Ecumenical Hunger's parking lot last Saturday, December 7th. With thousands of red, yellow, and white bags in hand, they were gearing up for Distribution Day, or D-Day. Through the months of November and December, an astonishing 250,901 pounds of cans and non-perishables were collected. Then, these students came together in East Palo Alto to distribute the packaged goods to over 300 surrounding families.

Months of Careful Organization

This remarkable day was made possible by months of meticulous organization by the Leadership team. As senior advisor and Leadership student Addy McCombs said, "It's one of the greatest events in the Leadership program. It's a wonderful opportunity to see the fruits of our labor in canning, boxing, and sorting."

Early Morning Setup

Leadership students and teachers arrived at Ecumenical Hunger at 6:15 a.m. to set up assembly lines and fill the colorful tote bags with an array of food items. These bags contained bread, milk, pasta, and fresh fruits, providing families with a diverse selection.

Algebra teacher Laurel Simons shared her enthusiasm, stating, "D-Day is one of my favorite days of the year. It's great to see students in a different setting while being able to contribute to the community. Whether it's hauling or packing bags, it always feels like I'm making a difference."

Volunteers at Work

As more students and community members arrived, they began filling the five rows of bags for easy access. The volunteers worked in harmony, assembling the food and getting ready for the long line of families that was already forming.

Junior VT Do was seen organizing bags into their respective rows, showing the efficiency and teamwork among the volunteers.

Distribution Begins

At 8 a.m., the distribution officially started. Students and teachers wheeled carts piled high with boxes of canned food and bags of packaged food to waiting cars. Different groups worked separately to pack goods into bags, reload carts with food and toiletries, or deliver goods. As sophomore Calvin Blanford said, "It's a lot of fun to help out the community and see the joy on people's faces when they receive the food they need."

Community Support

Beyond Menlo-Atherton High School (M-A), people from the surrounding community also lent their support. Woodside sophomore Lincoln Campbell explained, "I do a lot of service through scouts, and this is another chance for me to give back to the community while having fun with my friends." Even the mayors of Menlo Park and Redwood City, Cecilia Taylor and Jeff Gee, showed up to assist in distributing food to families.

Assembly Line Success

By 8:45 a.m., the assembly lines had finished sorting all the food ready for delivery. Senior D-Day Committee co-lead Abbie MacLeod was pleased, stating, "My favorite part of today was our assembly lines. They were extremely organized this year, which allowed us to get the food to the families faster than in the past few years."

Food Distribution Completion

By 11 a.m., all the food had been successfully distributed.

Class Competition Results

In this year's class competition, seniors emerged as the top collectors with 112,139 pounds of food. Juniors followed closely with 63,057 pounds. The M-A Chess Community once again topped the clubs' leaderboard, raising a total of 17,253 pounds. Among sports, the dance team took the lead, raising 18,045 pounds.

Junior and D-Day committee co-lead Auden Jones reflected on the day, saying, "Every year, I wish we could have more food and more options to give out. Realizing that the food we collected over the past month will only last these families for two to three weeks makes us realize how much more we can do. But it's still wonderful that we can come together as a school and make a difference in this way."