The SCHS Turkey Drive is a fundraiser run by the sponsors and student members of FCCLA. This fundraiser is sponsored by No Hunger Holiday to get turkeys and Thanksgiving meal ingredients to families in need. No Hunger Holiday goes to a lot of schools in the St. Charles area including: Wentzville and Orchard Farm. They help thousands of people over the holiday season. The money raised by students and staff between Oct. 27 and Nov. 13 will go towards purchasing these items.
Daniele Munzer is a sponsor of FCCLA and has been a sponsor since 2012. Munzer’s second year sponsoring the club is when the Turkey Drive fundraiser started in 2013.
“We appreciate the generosity. It’s awesome to see kids get involved and willing to help other families in need on the holidays and being able to support this many families,” Munzer said.
Turkeys are expensive, so at the beginning of the Turkey Drive, roughly 10 to 15 turkeys were purchased. Over the last three years there has been a consistency of 30 plus turkeys being purchased per year. The most successful year for the fundraiser was after Covid in 2021, with everyone being back in school and feeling generous. Thousands of dollars were raised that year and over 110 turkeys were purchased. The goal for the Turkey Drive this year is to keep within the 30s and 40s range of turkeys purchased.
Elizabeth Laley is also a sponsor of FCCLA and she has been sponsoring for “six or seven years,” she said.
“It seems to be going well. It seems that people are donating and kids and teachers are encouraging donations,” Laley said.
Senior Kierra Skillington joined FCCLA her sophomore year. This is her third year being a member. Skillington’s favorite part of the club is the conferences and meetings as it allows her to see how people connect and become close with each other. She loves doing the Turkey Drive because it’s for a very good cause.
“No Hunger Holidays is working miracles to help lower income families have an absolutely magical holiday season,” she said.
Junior Shavon Kyem joined FCCLA her freshman year, making this her third year as a member. Her favorite part of the club is the people involved along with the competitions and state opportunities. When it comes to the annual Turkey Drive, Kyem enjoys doing a project over the Turkey Drive and seeing how the school gets involved to help other people.
The final result for this year’s Turkey Drive was a success. Just over $900 was raised which is a little more than last year. The top donating AIPs were Mrs. Hippe, Mrs. Kilker, and Mr. Messina, with Mrs. Kohr’s AIP winning overall.
