Stepinac students volunteering at last year’s SOUPer Bowl
Continuing a 12-year tradition, Stepinac High School students are mobilizing their efforts in the school’s single largest annual food drive, known as the SOUPer Bowl, to help Feeding Westchester meet its critically important mission.
When the campaign ends on February 9, the canned nutritious food items the students collect will be donated to the non-profit committed to “nourish our neighbors in the fight against hunger” in communities throughout Westchester. The timing of the SOUPer Bowl Food Drive helps to address low inventories of food items that food pantries experience following the holidays.
Last year, students of the renowned all-boys Catholic high school collected and donated more than 2,000 pounds of nutritious, non-perishable food item which made it possible for Feeding Westchester to provide about 2,000 meals to help feed children, seniors and families throughout the region.
On its website, www.FeedingWestchester.org), the nonprofit notes children and adults from all walks of life go hungry in every community. “Our programs are designed to address food insecurity when and where the need is greatest.”
“Although Westchester is a wealthy area, wages remain low and stagnant for the working poor, and the cost of living continues to rise. With fixed expenses like rent and childcare, groceries are often the first family expense to be cut.”
Underscoring the severity of food insecurity in the region, on average, every month Feeding Westchester serves 220,000 people, many of whom are children. In fiscal 2023, it distributed more than 21 million pounds of food, equal to more than 17 million meals.
When Fr. Thomas Collins (Class of ’79), President, launched Stepinac’s SOUPer Bowl in 2012, he said: “We knew the food pantries in this area would be depleted after Thanksgiving and Christmas so I challenged the students to meet the needs of the hungry.” Year after year, Stepinac’s students have continued to meet that challenge.
To learn more about Feeding Westchester and to make a donation to support its mission, visit www.FeedingWestchester.org.
