Reflection by Elizabeth Slamkowski-DiTommasso, director of Christian service

Nothing can stop the Gonzaga Prep Food Drive!  At least that’s the message that anyone looking into the history of Gonzaga Prep’s longest standing program will discover. Gonzaga Prep’s annual Thanksgiving Food Drive has existed for as long as any living member of the school knows. It is truly legendary. A legend is a story, often about saints, that may include supernatural beings or an explanation of the impossible. Anyone who has had any sort of experience with the Gonzaga Prep Food Drive knows that it hits all of those points.

Bullpups know the legendary, saintly characters who have transformed the Food Drive into what it is today: Phil Kuder, Leslie Plaster, Barry Barfield, Joelle Traynor, Neil Kempen, and Taryn League are just some of the names that come to mind. They have pushed, inspired, donated class time to sort and weigh food, and led teams of students who have done what was thought to be the impossible. These saints have succeeded in bringing in record amounts of food in the most challenging of conditions: ice, wind, and snow storms and now, a pandemic. Barry Barfield recalled the year that Spokane was hit by the ice storm, before the internet and email. The school wondered if they should cancel the Food Drive because the building had no heat or power, and students had been home for at least a week—many without power as well. The way that students, parents, faculty, and staff rallied together that year adds to the legendary status of this program. Students set a record that upped the standard for every year to come. Previously, students had hit around 60,000 pounds of food collected. The year of ice storm was the first year the community brought in—thanks to the support of the Spokane community and the Holy Spirit—100,000 pounds! 

We know that the faculty, staff, parents, and administrators have been saintlike leaders through decades of Food Drives, but there is nothing more motivating or beautiful than our Bullpup students rallying behind the Spokane community and fighting food insecurity one can and smile at a time. The legend of the Food Drive is what it is because of these young people. From the Food Drive Committee members, to the DI state champions, the theater students, the athletes, and the freshmen newbies, Food Drive reflects the goodness of ALL of our Bullpups. It is our students who battle the elements to go door-to-door asking for cans and stand outside of grocery stores asking folks to share what they can with the hungry. It is our students who get each other pumped up, wear turkey suits to keep morale boosted, collect money, dress up like Moses to read the 10 Food Drive Commandments, and cheer on their teachers as they compete for more pounds of food in crazy competitions, etc. Our students are the heart and soul of this program. We know that when times are tough, our students rise to the occasion. As the legend goes, our students have persevered through ice, wind, snow, economic crises. The COVID-19 pandemic will be no different. We know our students will show up because nothing can stop the Gonzaga Prep Food Drive. Let Food Drive 2020 begin!