Paloma NJROTC unit donates 800 cans of food to Cupboard

The NJROTC unit from Paloma Valley High School donated over 800 cans of food to the Menifee Valley Community Cupboard on March 31. Pictured left to right are a Cupboard volunteer; Dawn Smith, director of the Community Cupboard; another Cupboard volunteer; and B. Singfield, Senior Naval Science Instructor with PVHS NJROTC.

The following is a press release from the Paloma Valley High School NJROTSC Wildcat Battalion, written by Public Affairs Officer Kacey Street:

When cadets of the NJROTC unit at Paloma Valley High School heard that the local food bank was stretched to its limits supporting families impacted by the pandemic, they began thinking of ways to provide support. Having already spearheaded an initiative to help the homeless in Los Angeles during the Christmas holiday season, the charitable juices of the cadets were already flowing. After brainstorming some possible solutions, the unit started a canned food drive.

Collecting donations, like everything during this pandemic, was complicated due to social distancing. The cadets got off to a slow start when the initiative started on March 8 but quickly picked up momentum. Cadet Kendrick Wood inspired the battalion to contribute by donating 90 cans of food. As momentum picked up, other cadets also made sizable contributions of canned food, including Arianne Presbitero (80) and Nicole Wetzel (64).

Over the next three weeks, the cadets collected more than 800 cans of food. On March 31, the battalion delivered the items to the Menifee Valley Community Cupboard. Dawn Smith, director of the Menifee Valley Community Cupboard, commented that everything delivered would immensely help -- even the milk crates in which the cadets hauled the cans.

When asked why she felt it important to donate, cadet Sandra Casas replied, “There’s a lot of food insecurity in our community. When we work together, everything goes better and problems get solved.”

The cadets understand that there are members of our community that battle food insecurity year-round, not just during the holiday season. To continue to address the food security needs of our community, the battalion has made the canned food drive an annual event and can’t wait to exceed this year’s donation.