GREENSBORO, N.C. — Don't let the kids running across the cafeteria fool you, Thursday at Sternberger Elementary, these kids were on a mission – a mission to fight hunger in Guilford County in what they call "A Day of Kindness".
"The students collected food for the month of January. They brought in food from seven different areas, and we are gonna pack them in bags," Sternberger P.E. Teacher, Chris Carroll said.
Carroll and the Hoot Initiaitve have partnered with Out of the Garden Project to ensure that kids in the county will have access to food for the weekend.
Carroll said, "I've taken school groups to Out of the Garden to work in the warehouse, but it got the point where we couldn't take the kids to the warehouse anymore, so I brought the warehouse to them!"
With teachers, parents, and students coming together, Sternberger's cafeteria was abuzz with helpers stacking bag after bag.
"We've probably packed over 600 bags now before 10:30," Carroll said. "But by the end of the day, we will have packed over 1,000 bags!"
Yet for Carroll and the teachers of Sternberger, it never was just about the final numbers.
"The mission for us is to learn to be in service, to learn to enjoy service, to learn to search out for opportunities to serve," Carroll said.
By focusing on that spirit of service, Sternberger's Day of Kindness will be one that the students take with them for years to come. It makes Carroll proud to call Sternberger Elementary his family.
"I'm proud of the students [and] I'm proud of the parents who have done what they have in our community, to help us achieve this goal," Carroll said.