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After two months, and giving away more than 100,000 pounds of produce, Cameron FFA students will wrap up their free produce giveaway Monday.

With Cameron R-1 School District students returning to class Thursday, FFA students will host one last produce giveaway next Monday and focus on distributing packages throughout each school campus.

“It will be approximately 144,000 pounds we will have handed out after the final week. Next week, it’s still going to arrive here at the same time, but because it’s in the student parking lot and the traffic, we’re not going to begin passing out boxes until 3:30 p.m. June 15 was our first week,” Cameron FFA Teacher Carmen Buller said. “… I’m kind of going to be sad because we won’t get to keep seeing the community going through. Many people have been very blessed by these boxes and I’ll miss giving them out to the community members that need them.”

For the past 12 weeks Buller, fellow FFA teacher Chris Henderson and numerous student and teacher volunteers handed out fresh produce as part of a grant through CNC Produce. Often arriving at Cameron High School before sunrise, volunteers served hundreds of Cameron residents each week with many picking up produce for those unable due to limited access to transportation or potential health concerns related to COVID-19. 

When it comes to public participation, what started as a trickle became a flood. Before long the sight of cars lined up inside the CHS student parking lot became a weekly occurrence. At one point, a unit out of the Missouri National Guard joined in distributing the boxes. Buller feels the produce giveaway instills in students one of the core principles of FFA - community above self.

“That’s the main lesson I like to give the kids. Even during a pandemic, you find ways to help others,” Buller said. “We’re fortunate we were able to find this grant and receive it. Even during these times you can find ways to help others, even if you can’t have contact with people. There are ways to serve others and there is a need.”

One student who learned that lesson well this summer was FFA student Jackson Klink. Klink participated in all 12 produce giveaways and considers the experience greatly enriching.

“My mom told me about it. It sounded like fun so we did it for a couple of weeks and we just made it a habit,” Klink said. “The community appreciates the things the school does for them … It makes me feel really good. Some people are afraid to get out or they can’t get out because of COVID-19 or other reasons. It helps out.”

For more information regarding next week’s produce giveaway, visit the Cameron FFA Facebook page.

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