The annual Jack Emery Drive is back this year but has seen a decline in the amount of cans and goods donated by students, according to Associated Student Body (ASB) president and MUSD Jack Emery Drive coordinator, senior Victoria Ly. ASB has continued to encourage students to donate change, cans of food and other non-perishable goods in order to provide food and money to the local Milpitas Food Pantry, and has worked on fundraising with local restaurants and businesses, she added.
Last year, MHS collected more than 48,000 cans, exceeding its goal by over 20,000 cans, according to ASB vice president and MHS Jack Emery Drive lead, senior Gavin Heraldo. As of Dec. 8, 2022, the school has raised a total of $16,315.68, mostly from monetary donations, out of the 22,000 major can goal and 20,000 minor can goal where two cans equals one dollar, he added. This year, the drive has not been as supported by important benefactors, such as the Positive Alternative Recreation Teambuilding Impact (PARTI) program, which donated $9000, equivalent to 18,000 cans, last year, but is only willing to donate conditionally this year, Heraldo said. The program said they will donate $2500 if ASB can convince ten people to participate in a nonviolence fashion show and model outfits sponsored by fashion companies,” he added.
“ASB is trying to pinpoint a reason why donations are significantly less this year, but it’s hard to find one because last year was such a special case coming back,” senior class secretary and Collections Committee lead Annalise Ho said. We are looking at ASB as an example as to what we did wrong and what we did right. It could be that we simply didn’t publicize enough, or it could be because of inflation that people do not have the means of donating themselves,” Ho said.
ASB is offering various prizes such as ‘pieing’ administration and teachers, celebrating with donuts and pizzas, and individual gifts from teachers to incentivize students to donate, junior class president and Jack Emery events committee lead Davin Jeng said.
“For the most part, the drive is pretty similar to last year, including collections, donations, and incentives,” Jeng said. “We have, however, brought some old events, such as Coins for Change. It’s a mini-class competition in which each class collects and donates coins, where coins count for positive points, and dollar bills count for negative,” Jeng said.
Despite collecting fewer donations, ASB is attempting to refrain from adopting the drive’s traditional competitive nature, Heraldo said. In the past, MHS has also tried to challenge other local high schools, but this year, the emphasis is being placed on just bringing MUSD together, Heraldo said. The theme of this year is ‘Comm-UNITY’ as the district plans to bring together its various schools to give back to the city, he said. The change came in subtle ways, such as changing ‘Penny Wars’ to ‘Coins for Change’ and ‘Duct-Tape Wars’ to ‘Floor is Lava’ and encouraging students to work together amidst friendly competition, Heraldo added.
“MHS plays a huge role in the Jack Emery Drive,” Heraldo said. “Last year, we raised a third of the total amount of 133,000 cans. A lot of donations come from our school, and I think it’s important that we come together and support those in need with this drive,” he added.
Helping over 3,500 families last year, the Jack Emery drive was one of the reasons the Milpitas Food Pantry did not struggle and had enough food and resources to make ends meet, unlike other food pantries in the area, said Ly, who was the MHS drive coordinator for the 2021-2022 school year.
“Food insecurity is a very prominent issue even if we don’t realize it. A lot of people don’t even get basic necessities that they deserve, and those that are more fortunate should come together to support them and contribute to the community,” Ly said.
The theme of ‘Comm-UNITY’, was inspired by Jack Emery himself, who was a man from Nebraska and was quite impoverished, Ly said. After moving to San Jose and making a living for himself, he wanted to give back to the community because he knew what it was like being poor, she said. Even when he passed away, the local Lions Club and other organizations continued to run the drive, and eventually asked community members and schools to help as well, she said.
“The holiday season is not only about receiving, but giving,” Ho said. “I think that it’s in our moral duty to give back to those who don’t have the means to provide for themselves or are struggling to make ends meet. It’s not about winning the competition, but coming together and realizing that there are a group of people in our community that struggle, and working to help them and make life even just a little bit better,” she added.