SYLACAUGA, Ala. – Hundreds, if not thousands, of lives were positively impacted as the Sylacauga community came together to donate to what is becoming a household Christmas tradition.
The 3rd annual Stuff the Bus Food and Toy Drive just completed its third successful campaign in as many tries. The 3rd annual Stuff the Bus Food and Toy Drive presented by 98.3 Fox FM, KiX 100.3, Yea!106.5, and SylacaugaNews.com gives people an opportunity to fill a school bus with non-perishable food items and toys for families and children across the area. The food is collected by Alabama Childhood Food Solutions and the toys are collected by the Sylacauga Alliance for Family Enhancement.
Just as the second annual benefit outperformed the first, the third has outperformed the second as Stuff the Bus continues to gain more momentum each year.
Once the donations were tallied up, Alabama Childhood Food Solutions reported over 3,00o lbs non-perishable food items were donated to the Talladega Co. School bus that sat at Tony Serra Ford on Hwy. 280. According to Jim Jones, Executive Director of ACFS, there was enough food donated to feed 144 families for one week each. Other donors added enough meat, fresh fruit, and vegetables to create a blessed holiday for those families.
Enough toys were donated to the initiative to serve 176 children were from 103 families. This is the most families SAFE has ever been able to serve.
Clearly Stuff the Bus has become a staple of the Christmas season. One anonymous family began a new tradition, donating $1,000 to others through Stuff the Bus. The Sylacauga High School basketball program has also made Stuff the Bus an annual tradition.
“We are overwhelmed by the support and participation in the 3rd annual Stuff the Bus Food and Toy Drive. This has grown more than we could have ever anticipated,” said Michael Brannon. Brannon is the Executive Vice President of RadioAlabama. “Thousands of lives have been touched and families were able to have a merry Christmas because of the generosity and selflessness of so many in our community.”
Stuff the Bus was also sponsored by the Serra Sylacauga Autoplex, Chick-fil-A, Huddle House, RadioAlabama, Sylacauga Chamber of Commerce and MainStreet Family Care.