Shiloh High School students spread holiday cheer with food baskets for families in need

HUME, Ill. (WAND) — It’s the season of giving at Shiloh High School, where students are making sure families in their community have a holiday meal on the table.

Volunteers from several school clubs spent days inside the school’s agriculture shop sorting, stacking and stuffing food baskets filled with essential items like canned goods, pasta and rice. Instead of counting down the days until Christmas break, these students focused on helping others.

“In the small community that we live in, there is definitely lots of need,” said junior Ahlyssa Garwood.

Students from kindergarten through the senior class donated food items, all coming together to support nearly 50 families across the district.

“Not everyone has the money to buy food, so it is nice that we can just round it all up, put it in some baskets and give it to them,” said freshman Claire Tharp, a member of Student Council and FFA.

Student Council and FFA have partnered on the holiday basket project for more than 30 years, continuing a tradition of service that students say means even more in a small community like theirs.

“We just like to help out wherever we can, especially the students that go here,” Garwood said.

This year, the need was higher than ever, prompting students to fill the baskets fuller to ensure no family went without one. Once assembled, the baskets were delivered directly to families in need — a moment students say is the most rewarding part of the project.

“My favorite part is definitely delivery day,” Garwood said. “We get to hand out those baskets and see all of the gratitude that those community members have for us and let them know that we are there for them.”

In total, students delivered food boxes to 50 families, helping 153 people enjoy a holiday meal.

For the students involved, the project is more than just volunteering — it’s a lesson in generosity and the true spirit of the holiday season.

“It can be stressful and overwhelming in the beginning,” Garwood said, “but it is always, always worth it in the end.”