One Stuffed Bus

After the second stop on the inaugural "Stuff the Bus" event in Waterford on Nov. 17, a group of five volunteers began to look a bit worried.

Students from Southwest and Oswegatchie, the first two elementary schools on their route, had nearly filled all of the seats with bags and boxes of non-perishable food.

"We might have to get another bus," Dani Gorman, the director of Waterford Youth Services Bureau, said. In the end, one yellow bus did the trick as it carried on to Quaker Hill School, and even managed a stop at Carelot child care center on Boston Post Road to pick up donations.

Waterford students contributed 4,l05 pounds of food, which the volunteers calculated after a quick stop at the transfer station to weigh the bus.

"We really didn't expect this much," Erin Eccleston, program coordinator at WYSB, said.

The food was turned over to the Interfaith Food Locker in the basement of Waterford Town Hall.

Gorman started "Stuff the Bus" in town after three years of success in Groton.

"There are some families out there who are in desperate need," Gorman said.

Youth Services contacted the principals at the town's three elementary schools, who said they were glad to help.

Also, First Student, the company that contracts with the town to provide student transportation, donated the bus and a driver for the day.

"We were happy to help," Barbara Bingham, a manager at First Student, said.

"We're really thankful to First Student," Gorman said.

At Southwest, kids began lining up shortly after 10 a.m, armed with everything from cans of soup to bags of pasta, even slightly more exotic fare such as New Orleans-style rice and beans.

First Selectman Daniel Steward also lent a hand, helping students load items onto the school bus.

Southwest principal Pat Fedor said the notion of filing a school bus captured the imagination of the kids.

"The students were very excited about 'Stuff the Bus,'" Fedor said. "They have contributed food and toy items over the years, but the school bus concept really caught their attention."

Fedor said teachers discussed the idea during the homeroom period and talked about the importance of of giving back.

"It was a very worthy project," she said.

Glenda Dexter, principal at Quaker Hill, said she was "heartened by the generosity of our Quaker Hill School community."

"The pride on the kids' faces when they brought in their donations was really priceless," she said.