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NOV.22, 2022— A Pal-Mac tradition came to a record-setting close on Tuesday, Nov. 22, as the annual Fill-A-Bus campaign brought in more than 2700 donated food items.

The setup is simple: All four school buildings, plus the Transportation Department, competed to see who could bring in the most goods starting on Nov.1. The donations go towards local food pantries.

This year's campaign brought in 2732 items, which brings us back to Tuesday's event.

Led by a group of high school students in the Future Business Leaders of America club, a Pal-Mac bus dropped by each building to collect the boxes of goods. Mr.Joe Hill oversees the club, but Athletic Director Tom Schmandt helped out, too.

Students from Mrs. Dragomani's Intermediate School class eventually joined up with the club to help them drop off their haul at the St. Patrick's Church, which is just a few steps away from the school. The church is the home to a food pantry. 

The students and the faculty created a human conveyor belt that extended from the back of the bus down the stairs to the building's basement. 

Once the group wrapped up with their haul, Chairperson for the Macedon Christmas Program, Shannon Hunsinger, thanked them for their efforts.

"It's really great," Hunsinger said. "It does go far, it does help a lot of people."

Not all 2700+ items went to St.Patrick's, as the bus brought another round to the nearby Zion Episcopal Church.

When asked what it was like to help lead the project, senior Mike D said he was happy to do it.

"It was pretty cool being able to give back to all of the families," he said. "I didn't get to do it as a fourth grader, but being able to do it as a senior is awesome."

Now we did mention this was a bit of a competition, and there was a clear winner: The Intermediate School! Students and staff brought in 1138 items.

In the end, it's the community that really won. This sentiment is shared by Schmandt:

"The whole community will benefit from the generosity and support provided in this focused effort," Schmandt said. "Please understand that we still have a lot of work to do to help feed and support those in need."

Check out a full photo gallery here!