ALTON — Calvary Christian School students packed, sealed, and prepared 5,000 meals through the school’s Feed the Need campaign, an effort to help families locally and overseas while teaching students about service.
The students and faculty participants in the Feed The Need campaign are true Difference Makers in their community.
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The school, at 1422 Washington Ave. in Alton, is participating for the third year. Students in kindergarten through 11th grade handled the packing and preparation, according to Pastor Wade Dobson. The effort was done on Friday, Oct. 9, 2026, at the church.
Of the meals, the group was proud to say that 1,000 will stay local and be delivered to Community Hope Center. The remaining 4,000 will go to a country in Southeast Asia through the school’s partnership with Feed the Hunger, which delivers meals to various countries.
Pastor Dobson said the campaign is a fundraiser that supports the school while reinforcing its mission of teaching students to love their neighbors and serve others, including people they may never meet.
"In recent weeks, we have discussed with students information about the families and places where people live who will receive the meals, helping connect the packing effort to the people it will serve," Pastor Dobson said. "The project also introduces younger students to different cultures and circumstances." The Feed the Need program also helps students to understand that many live difficult lives and how much the food enhances their survival.
Each meal bag contains a vegetable mix, lentils for protein, a powder containing 21 vitamins and rice. Feed the Hunger pairs the meals with a sustainable protein when they are sent to recipient countries, Dobson said.
The campaign reflects the school’s mission to provide a Christ-centered environment that prepares students spiritually, academically, emotionally, socially and physically.
“It’s about shaping young people who live out their faith through service and leadership,” Pastor Dobson said.
Dobson said the school now serves kindergarten through 12th grade and offers a classical Christian model of education. The school's students also come from various churches and backgrounds, with about half of its families from the church and the other half from the broader community, he said.
If you have a Difference Makers idea, e-mail news@riverbender.com or text (618) 623-5930.
