School resource officer Tommy Wooten is heading into his last four weeks at school. Just because he doesn’t have a lot of time left here doesn’t mean that he didn’t have time for one last project that will have a lasting impact on not only the school, but the community as well.

Officer Wooten is putting together a food bank that will be located in the school with the help of the construction classes.

“It’ll be for anyone who needs food,” said Officer Wooten. “They can request help from the counseling center, and we are hoping we can get them through the weekend.”

The food bank is going to be located in the glass room in the seminar room. It is being built in the construction department in a collaborative effort between the construction classes, the drafting classes, and Mill Worx.

“It’s only costing $600 because of the generosity of Mill Worx,” said construction teacher Mr. Hoffius. “Hopefully it will be ready by the end of April.”

The food bank is going to be a small-scale food bank. It will not be able to support families for multiple weeks at a time.  The food bank is going to be stocked by canned food drives throughout the school year.

“It will be stocked by student lead canned food drives,” said Officer Wooten. “It’s a way the student body can take care of each other.” The food bank has already received its first donation, even before it is in use.

“We’ve already been given a large container of food from George Junior High,” said Officer Wooten.

It is not going to be limited to students from this school, but it is going to help anyone in the community who needs it. After Officer Wooten leaves, EAST is going to use the food bank as a year to year project.

Principals, counselors, and the nurse will be distributing the food to those in need.

“My vision is that students will see and understand the need of taking care of each other,” said Officer Wooten. “I hope that the vision is seen by the students. Nobody should be hungry.”