The entire student body at Timothy Christian School rallied together to collect non-perishable items for families in need this holiday season, but the best part of this project was in gathering it all together – the “stuffing.” Students had a blast “stuffing the truck.”
Just before thanksgiving break, the Stuff the Truck vehicle pulled into TCS to be loaded by students. Stuff the Truck uses a large truck that collects food for the food pantry that is part of My Neighbor’s Ministries which is a ministry of Zarephath Christian Church. Each month 300-400 families from Somerset, South Plainfield, North Plainfield, Plainfield, Bound Brook and Bridgewater are helped by this ministry.
“The kids stuffed the truck to a little over 3,000 pounds. That’s more than the previous two years. This year, the children really went all the way,” said Aixa Katz, Stuff the Truck Coordinator and TCS Parent.
As part of Spirit Week, the TCS high school students have collected canned goods for My Neighbor’s Food Pantry for many years, yet this was the first time the entire school was included. It was also a first for students in loading the truck.
Katz says the need is greater this year for the many local families who are receiving assistance from My Neighbor’s Ministries.
“We see a lot of families struggling this time of the year. It’s really hard. There are a lot of single moms. People lose their jobs at the end of the year. This is a huge help for them,” Katz explained further.
Each grade was assigned items so that there would not be overlap in the items donated. Everything from canned soup to pasta and peanut butter. Elementary students created cards and wrote on the bags donated to the families. 
“It means so much to the families that someone took the time to do this. A lot of kids wrote I love you,” said Katz. “We all can become self-centered. What I saw at TCS was amazing. To see the glow on the kids’ faces. To come to the truck personally there was a bigger sense of what they’re doing.”
Students were putting into action and learning Biblical truth: It is more blessed to give than receive. Acts 20:35