Archdiocese of Newark schools tackle hunger during Super Bowl LVII
As football fans around the country prepared for Super Bowl parties and players warmed up for the big game, Catholic school students around the Archdiocese of Newark were busy tackling the issue of hunger. Catholic school students spent weeks leading up to the Super Bowl collecting canned goods and nonperishables for the annual nationwide Souper Bowl of Caring.
The Souper Bowl of Caring began in 1990 when Reverend Brad Smith at Spring Valley Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina called on his congregation to “be mindful of those who are without a bowl of soup to eat” as they celebrated the Super Bowl that weekend, according to Tackle Hunger, which now organizes The Souper Bowl of Caring.
Tackle Hunger partners with the NFL and other national advocates to promote charitable giving during Super Bowl weekend.
Over the years, the movement has evolved into an annual nationwide event with over 300,000 groups participating to support local food programs in their communities.
The non-profit “asks school groups, college students, and anyone with a heart for kids to use the Tackle Hunger Challenge to support food charities, especially those that are feeding our students in K-12 schools and colleges,” according to the Tackle Hunger website.
The Community Food Bank of New Jersey reports that more than 650,000 people in New Jersey face hunger every day, and approximately 175,000 of them are children.
Students in the National Junior Honor Society at St. Elizabeth School in Wyckoff organized a soup can drive that collected over 1900 cans of soup for Oasis – A Haven For Women And Children in Paterson. The successful drive garnered attention from NJ Senator Kristin M. Corrado, District 40, who wrote “I would like to recognize and commend the exceptional students at St. Elizabeth School [sic] for working together to make a positive difference in their local communities!… The future looks bright with students like these working to make the world a better place to live!”
Students at Our Lady of Mercy Academy in Park Ridge and St. Bartholomew School in Scotch Plains brought in cans of soup in exchange for wearing their favorite sports Jersey to school. Our Lady of Mercy Academy Students donated over 500 containers of soup to help those in need at The Tri-Boro Food Pantry in Pascack Valley.
At the Academy of the Most Blessed Sacrament in Franklin Lakes, Queen of Peace in North Arlington, St. Elizabeth in Wyckoff, and Our Lady of the Lake School in Verona, school communities came together to collect cans during the Souper Bowl of Caring.
Schools take on the Souper Bowl of Caring challenge
