To say the kids got a hands-on lesson in charity would be an understatement.
In classic bucket-brigade style Friday morning, nearly 1,300 Wauconda High School students passed more than 8,000 food items along a half-mile route from the high school to the Wauconda-Island Lake Food Pantry on Main Street.
Enduring a biting windchill and temperatures in the lower 30s, the kids tossed, handed and sometimes dropped thousands of bags along the way.
Student Council President Vinny Torossy organized the first-ever event. He got the idea after seeing a news story about another high school that staged a similar effort.
“We could have just driven the truck to the food pantry and made the delivery, but this was a way to make sure everyone had a hand in the process,” said the junior student. “Everyone gave a helping hand. Everyone was involved in the process.”
March is traditionally the month when students and staff in District 118 hold their annual food drive.