Turkey Roundup falters at Fossil

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Fossil Ridge High School held its 13th annual Turkey Roundup on Thursday, November 9. The Turkey Roundup is organized by the Poudre School District (PSD) every year, so Fossil has been a participant since the school opened in 2004. According to counselor Melissa Vasa, the Roundup is meant to act as a competition between PSD schools to see who can collect the most turkeys, though she does not think that Fossil has ever won.

Turkeys that are collected will be donated to the Larimer County Food Bank before Thanksgiving, with the hope that students can assist those who cannot afford their own Thanksgiving meal. Students, teachers, and their families are encouraged to look at grocery store ads and flyers to find the best deals on a turkey. Junior Olivia Doro tries to donate as much as she can every year, and thinks, “It’s a really cool way to give back to the community.”

Riley Froelich, a senior, did not donate to the Roundup, but would have if she had more time to plan. “I don’t know why they didn’t give us more warning ahead of time. It felt like ‘Tomorrow! Bring in a turkey!’” she said. If anyone missed their chance to bring a turkey to the Roundup, they can still take a turkey, or any other boxed good, to the Food Bank. This year, their goal is to gather 4,000 frozen turkeys to help nearly 36,000 people during the holiday season.

English teacher Darren Marshall was unable to donate a turkey to the Roundup because the store was sold out, but said that because of events like this he starts to question why he does not donate to causes such as the food bank more often. The Food Bank accepts donations all year long, and hosts community events throughout the year that anyone can assist at and attend.

PSD collected 1,961 turkeys at the Roundup in 2016, though the numbers for this year’s Roundup have not yet been finalized. Out of 1,940 students, Fossil donated just 41 turkeys on Thursday – a much smaller number than last year’s, which was over 100. Comparatively, Bacon Elementary School enrolls roughly 550 students and donated nearly 350 turkeys to the Roundup. If at least half of the students at Fossil donated a turkey, they would meet 25% of the Food Bank’s goal in a single day. If a majority of Fossil students had the ability to donate turkeys and followed through, the school could nearly double the amount of turkeys that PSD donates every year. Hopefully more students will learn of the Turkey Roundup next year and help the Fort Collins community.

Did you donate a turkey to the Roundup?

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