During this holiday season, the Catasauqua Community Cares Program is working to ensure Catasauqua Area School District students are well-fed and warm.

C3P hosted a winter coat drive and food distribution Nov. 18 at the district administration office on North 14th Street. Lois Reed, former CASD business manager, serves as the C3P coordinator. She noted there is a delicate logistical “dance” involved with arranging all the pieces of the food distribution and winter coat drive puzzle.

Last year, the group was able to give out more than 150 coats, and Reed reported they gave out 165 this year. She joked the closet in the administration building was overflowing before the distribution. There was also a donation of coats from Whitehall Area Rotary Club. In addition to coats of various sizes and styles, there was a selection of hats and gloves as well.

Reed is adamant no students go cold in the district. There were five students who couldn’t find the right sizes, so monetary donations allow for Reed to go purchase what is needed. She noted Black Friday sales are very helpful.

Additionally, C3P provides previously identified students with a bag each weekend and school break with breakfast, lunch and snack items. There are approximately 106 students districtwide who receive bags each week. According to Reed, the number is split almost equally among the three schools. Over longer holiday breaks, additional food is given as well.

The C3P headquarters is in a former computer lab at Catasauqua Middle School. There is ample space to store and pack the dry and shelf-stable food items. As of now, there is no space for refrigerated items. Reed noted this is only an issue during the holiday season.

Twelve CMS Life Skills students, known as the 304 Crew, work four days a week, as well as members of the C3P Club, to prepare and pack the bags for the CMS and Sheckler Elementary School students under the watchful eye of instructional facilitator Joann Heffner. This work helps the Life Skills students learn important life lessons, such as following instructions, packing, counting, responsibility and more.

The high school students have a different process of accessing the food and personal care items. The identified students receive an email detailing the items available, and they choose what they will take.

Reed shared a special thanks to Holy Trinity Memorial Lutheran Church and Presbyterian Church of Catasauqua for their continued donations of personal care products, which are in high demand at the high school.

This time of year, the 304 Crew and C3P Club were especially busy preparing for the Thanksgiving holiday. According to Reed, there were 46 families picking up bags of food for Thanksgiving.

Reed said the group usually receives a lot of food items from Second Harvest Food Bank, but that has not been the case this year. She noted they are struggling to receive needed items from Second Harvest, so the other private and corporate donations are integral.

C3P recently received large donations from Lehigh Valley Educators Credit Union and Hanover Township, Lehigh County. The group additionally received items like juice and cereal from Feed the Children, as well as personal care products like shampoo.

Most of the food items are purchased by the group itself. For the Thanksgiving distribution, Reed noted she ordered items like frozen pizzas, burger and chicken patties, waffles, hot dogs, bread, eggs and margarine.

Reed was grateful to report the Hicks family, of Catasauqua, and friends donated 25 turkeys, as well as mashed potatoes and other sides this year. The Hicks family and friends also donated for Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter last year.

“It’s phenomenal,” Reed said.

Reed noted the importance of connections with local food pantries and groups in the area. She said they recently received a “never-ending” donation of black beans. C3P had so many beans, they reached out to Catasauqua Community and Northampton Area food banks and Whitehall-Coplay Hunger Initiative.

Additionally, Reed was contacted by a warehouse in Bethlehem with a donation of four large pallets of juice boxes they are still sharing with students.

According to Reed, the C3P stock will be depleted after the Thanksgiving holiday. She is hoping for an uptick in donations to help them prepare for the longer winter break while continuing the weekly bags until then.

C3P can accept monetary and food donations, including individual snack items, canned pasta and soups, macaroni and cheese and other single-serve items.