More Than Just a Food Drive: Rolla Student Clubs Create a New Collaboration
By: Emma Alexander –
The Rolla FFA Chapter and the Rolla Key Club have two values in common: a desire to serve their community and a concern for neighbors in need. That is why more than 50 members of these two Rolla youth organizations worked as a team to pack 21,816 meals this month. These meals will be distributed by Hope Alliance-Rolla through the Friday Backpack program to students facing food insecurity during summer school and the 2025-26 school year.
May 8th might have been a normal school day but something new happened instead. Rolla FFA members and Rolla Key Club members worked together for the first time to reach a big goal: to pack 20,0000 meals for neighbors facing hunger. Students learned about the ingredients of protein-packed, nutrient-fortified rice and bean casserole and how to assemble them. Then they learned that a little healthy competition makes service projects more fun (that’s when the race began). As the afternoon continued, these Rolla student leaders learned about communication, organization, time management, and the effort it takes to help feed neighbors in need.
According to event co-organizer, Mrs. Christy Green, a Key Club Advisor, school aged children in #Agri-Ready Designated Phelps County have a high need for meals . The Hope Alliance Friday Backpack Program confidentially provides Rolla area children with bags of family-friendly, nutritious food in non-descript bags to help with weekend meals.
“I was excited when I saw that we were packing food from the raw ingredients. Watching my peers volunteer their time to pack meals allowed me to see a new part of them,” says Diana Patel, Rolla Key Club co-president. “Not only did our food packing party create 21,816 meals, it made an impact on the students packing. As we surpassed our original packing goal, I imagined the smiles of the people who would receive these meals.”
While the impact of this packing event on the hearts and minds of these students was priceless, combatting food insecurity doesn’t come without the cost of resources. Rolla FFA and Rolla Key Club both chose to equally invest chapter funds as collaborating partners in the meal packing project. They were supported by Key Club co-Advisor Christy Franks, FFA Advisor Cord Jenkins, and members of the Rolla Board of Education who participated with these student leaders.
Missouri Farmers Care is pleased to partner with 4-H clubs, FFA chapters, CTE, collegiate and other youth organizations through the Drive to Feed Kids which is an annual partnership with ADM, Brownfield Ag News and leaders across Missouri agriculture. Missouri agriculture has raised over 13 million meals since 2017 through the Drive to Feed Kids.