Experience the magic of feeding 1,300 people this Thanksgiving. An unforgettable experience for your student and family!
For the last 31 years each fall, the students, families, community and staff of Los Cerros Middle School have worked together to accomplish a very special project called The Basket Brigade. This project supplies all the fixings for a Thanksgiving meal and delivers to under served families throughout the East Bay. It is a wonderful way to help our children give back to their community. The Friday before Thanksgiving, all baskets will be delivered by our parents to local shelters for families suffering from domestic violence and homelessness and to local organizations providing help to low-income families. These shelters and organizations are located in Concord, Martinez and Livermore. Last year, we delivered 350 baskets and fed over 1,300 people
IMPORTANT DATES:
Food Drive - TBA
Produce Bagging - TBA
Basket Assembly - TBA
Basket Delivery - TBA
FOOD DRIVE:
The Basket Brigade Food Drive runs in November. Look for the Basket Brigade collection carts as the students are arriving at school. Please help by donating the following items. See a printable shopping list below.
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$25 Safeway gift card (make sure that it is for exactly $25.00 please - the gift card is for the recipient to purchase a turkey or other item of their choice)
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canned corn
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canned green beans
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chicken broth
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canned turkey gravy (no glass jars please)
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boxed mashed potatoes
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boxed stuffing mix
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cornbread mix
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cranberry sauce (no glass jars please)
PIZZA Party Points
Students will receive 1 point for every item they bring to the school and 1 point for every dollar that we receive in gift cards. We track the points by 1st period teacher. The 1st period teacher that has the most points at the end of the collection period will receive a pizza party for their 1st period students. The competition is fierce, so make sure your student doesn't miss out! Remember, the most important thing is that your student understands *why* they're donating. It's not really for the pizza - it's for the satisfaction of knowing that our neighbors will be able to enjoy a Thanksgiving meal that they might not otherwise have.
Amazon ordering now closed to prevent late deliveries.
FOOD DRIVE
We also need parent volunteers to help collect the Food Drive items each day.
PRODUCE BAGGING
The fresh produce for the baskets is donated by a local produce wholesaler, The Produce Exchange in Livermore. The potatoes and carrots already come in bags but the celery, onions, apples and oranges must be put into plastic bags to be ready to go in the baskets the next day. Students and parents are invited to help.
FOOD BAGGING
After school, students and parents are invited to help with the basket assembly. All the items are set up assembly line style in the MPR. Students start at the beginning with an empty bag and go through the line, picking up one of each item. This is a very fast and fun event! When finished, the MPR floor is covered with fully loaded food bags. We need parent volunteers to help with the setup of all the items on the assembly line and then to supervise as the students go through the line.
BASKET DELIVERY
All bags are delivered by parent volunteer drivers to the receiving shelters, food banks, and community service organizations in Livermore, Concord and Martinez. We need parent drivers with cars that can hold about 10 - 15 large Costco size reusable bags. It’s a great opportunity to see where our donations go.
Questions: Please email-basketbrigade@loscerrospta.org
Basket Brigade Chairs: Erin Bohannan & Colette Davis
