With the arrival of football season, Friday night lights spark ample amounts of school spirit and excitement. Amid the buzz of the upcoming rivalry games of the season, Gwinnet student leaders joined forces to create something incredible –the Rival Week Food Fight.
The idea originated from Dacula and Mill Creek High Schools own rivalry, and was adopted by Archer and Grayson last year. The objective was simple — whichever school collects the most canned goods wins.
The drive took place the week leading up to the big showdown between Archer and Grayson, and the competitiveness was high. At Archer, there were collection boxes throughout the school and in the main atrium for students to drop off their canned goods during the week. Winners aside, Archer and Grayson collected over 2,500 cans total. Not only did the canned goods go to a food pantry of the school's choice, but more than half of all the donations were sent to the victims of Hurricane Irma that had devastated part of the nation just a few weeks before.
After that great success, Archer and Grayson high schools have decided to bring back the Rival Week Food Fight this year for the upcoming game on Oct. 12. The entire week leading up to the game, beginning Mon., Oct. 8, there will be donation bins throughout Archer, collecting canned goods for those in need.
Rival Week Food Fight is a simple, but fun way to give back to the community. It fosters the idea of working together towards a common goal. Even in the light of a rival competition, it has shown the students that they have the ability and compassion to work together for the greater good.