As Thanksgiving season approaches, our Student Government has organized a schoolwide food drive and food pantry dubbed “The Artist’s Table” to support OCSA students and families in need year-round. SGA began accepting donations on November 3rd and is still looking for them. For those seeking to donate or who are in need of assistance, contact Ms. Swann or drop off any donations in her room.

This initiative’s importance is highlighted at the moment because as of November 1st, Federal Food Assistance Programs such as WIC and SNAP will not be paid for due to the ongoing government shutdown. Due to this, the SGA aims to provide relief to OCSA students and families that may be affected, as in their own words, “food is a human right and an immediate and tangible way to help someone.”

Currently, only non-perishable items in cans, jars, and sealed packets are being accepted. And as an incentive, some clubs are accepting donations as volunteer hours. To qualify, you must donate 1 vegetable, 1 fruit, 1 protein, and 1 grain; those who do so will be eligible for two volunteer hours towards any club that accepts them, per balanced donation. The clubs that currently accept hours from the pantry are National Honors Society, Arts Ambassadors, UNICEF, NAMI, Pathway to Cure, and EmpowerHER. If you are head of a club and would like to get it added to the list, contact your student body president or Ms. Swann.

They have provided a list of suggested items for donations, including canned vegetables, boxed pasta and other grains, shelf-stable milk or juice, granola bars and snack packs, as well as some toiletries such as soap and shampoo, and paper products like toilet paper and paper towels.

This event is separate from EmpowerHER’s Holiday for the Homeless, which is a donation drive for the homeless that ends December 3rd.  EmpowerHER’s drive sends any items out of school and is currently looking for a wider range of toiletries, along with clothing, childcare products, and more, on top of food.  Instead of volunteer hours, the incentive for the drive is a promise of Chic-Fil-A for the student who donates the most.

The pantry’s inspiration comes from its organizer’s—Ms. Swann’s—own time in high school. She recalls her high school having a “Devil’s Pantry” (due to the school’s mascot being the green devil) and says she always thought it was something that she always wanted OCSA to also have as a resource. “I never thought that I would be the person to do it,” Swann said, when elaborating on what inspired her to start the pantry now after wishing for it for so long. “I thought it would just pop up organically from somebody else. But when I was watching the news and it said that the SNAP benefits would stop, I thought, “Okay, well, I think I need to do this and quickly.”

So far, Swann has said that the pantry has grown much larger than she ever thought it would. From the original estimate of filling out just one bookshelf, they’ve now filled two and need to get space for more. “I was really shocked at the amount of things people brought.” Swann said when asked if the outcome so far was what she was expecting. “It’s mostly teachers that have brought stuff, and because we work with you guys all day, and we know some of you need it badly, a lot of teachers have donated, and they keep donating.”

Swann’s hope for the Artist Table is that it becomes a permanent resource on campus and can sustain itself to help those in need for as long as possible, even after she’s retired.

“I want them to know it’s available,” she said, and while unsure of how to promote it, Swann hopes every student in need knows that any student that might need the Artist’s Table “It’s there all year, whenever they need it.”