The Mission: Operation Turkey

The Watchdog

November 2006 Vol. 16 No. 1 C.D. Hylton High School Woodbridge, Va

The Mission: Operation Turkey

By Heather Gioia
Features Editor

Operation Turkey—collect cans for the hungry or cut open a turkey? Or maybe purchasing feathers for our teacher’s turkeys to see who get the most?

So what is Operation Turkey? It is a collection of canned and boxed goods that will be used to feed the homeless and financially deprived on Thanksgiving.

Operation Turkey is sponsored by ACTS, and they perform this operation every year with the assistance of Prince William County Schools, such as Hylton High School, and The Boy Scouts of America, who run the Scouting for Food aspect of the operation. The whole program runs from August 15, when ACTS sends out letters asking for assistance from different organizations, to November 22, when all of the Thanksgiving baskets are delivered to families.

Operation Turkey has been around for years now. In 2005, they collected enough food donations to feed nearly 1,400 families. ACTS food pantry says that their goal for this year is 1,500 families.

The goal cannot be reached without everyone’s help. Many students do not really understand the importance of Operation Turkey. While the majority of students here at Hylton may experience the happy environment with fresh turkey and green bean casserole on the table each Thanksgiving, there are those that are not so lucky, and are happy for the smallest things. Families sit hungry every night, but Thanksgiving is the one time of the year that everyone can help to make a difference in someone’s life. It is the opportunity for everyone to look into their cabinets and pull out that can of baked beans that dad bought last week (and therefore not expired) and bring it to school to drop in the bags FBLA have provided in each teacher’s classroom.

“Operation Turkey is a way for students to give back to the community and a way for them to understand that there are less fortunate people out there, especially in their own county. We always ask the question at Thanksgiving, ‘What are you thankful for?’ Well what if you don't have anything to be thankful for?” explained Jennifer Long, history teacher.

Still confused about how it all works? Starting the week of October 16 all Prince William County Schools began collecting food for Operation Turkey and continue until November 23. After that, food was collected and brought to the ACTS sorting sight for Prince William County Schools, and there the food was sorted out by food type. A few days before Thanksgiving, each of the food items, including turkeys, will be placed into a bag, and delivered to those families in need.

Some teachers, such as Long, understand the importance of Operation Turkey and did what they could to get students to bring in food. Long, for example, provided extra credit points for each can a student brought in. Her students were allowed to bring in a maximum of 50 cans each to earn 100 extra credit points.

Operation Turkey is not something to be ignored as it has been at Hylton in previous years. No one knows what tomorrow holds for them or their family. So open up your pantry and pick out some cans.