Green Trees students collect for food pantry and receive Commissioners Award
Milford. Elizabeth Hopper and Lyla Sustak took the initiative to feed people in need in their community by launching a food drive based at their school. Many of their after-school classmates joined in. Many donations came in, and the Pike County commissioners honored the students for their efforts.
Milford /
| 26 Feb 2020 | 09:12
Pictured in the back row (from left): Mary Coene, Mary Rebe, Green Trees director; county commissioner Matt Osterberg; Trevor Mussolini; and Cera Alber, program director; front: Gianni Davis, Elizabeth Hopper, Lyla Sustak, Jaylen Davis, and Jeff Foord (
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Project leaders Elizabeth Hopper and Lyla Sustak (
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Elizabeth Hopper, county commissioner Matt Osterberg, and Lyla Sustak show off awards (
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Elizabeth Hopper, a Green Trees Early Learning Center after-school student, decided one day that she would help her community food pantry.
The nine-year-old and her friend Lyla Sustak, 7, rallied a few more friends to coordinate a school-wide awareness campaign.
After gathering information about the food pantry, Elizabeth and her after-school classmates made several flyers requesting donations of non-perishable foods and listing Green Trees as the drop-off location. They posted the flyers in the learning center's hallway and other visible locations.
A generous quantity of dry goods and can foods were donated in February to the Ecumenical Food Pantry of Pike County, located in Milford, thanks to the thoughtfulness of Elizabeth and Lyla.
"We need to check the labels before we take the food," Elizabeth said as she checked the date on a can. "It wouldn't be nice to give bad food."
Mary Rebe, director of Green Trees, said, "Elizabeth's awareness of expiration dates and her initiative to monitor them closely was admirable."
These children deserve recognition for their good deeds, and Pike County Commissioner Matthew Osterberg did just that. He visited the school and presented each of these hard-working, community-minded students with the Commissioners Award.
"We work hard to encourage creativity and reinforce community support in the classroom," said Cera Alber, the school's program director.
Green Trees Early Learning Center, located at 102 County Road in Milford, is a non-profit school serving students from six weeks to 12 years old. Its mission is to awaken possibilities through learning and fun.
"We need to check the labels before we take the food. It wouldn't be nice to give bad food." --Elizabeth Hopper