Carol Cleary fills a bag with food: a box of cereal, fruit cups, a large can of tuna fish, two types of soup, canned vegetables, canned ravioli, a sleeve of crackers and a juice box.

It’s the type of bag that might go home with a ConVal student at the end of the day on Friday, a replacement for the free or reduced lunch meals he or she might be getting during school. Part of the district’s End 68 Hours of Hunger program, the SAU offices are home a storehouse of food, where volunteers come together every week to put together take-home bags for schools across the district. While their mainstay is providing food for over the weekend – the 68 hours the name refers to from Friday to Monday – they also provide food for over vacations and “one-meal bags” for during the week.

Cleary, one of the End 68 Hours of Hunger program coordinators for the ConVal chapter, said more students than ever are relying on the service.

“The cost of food is prohibitive right now. The rising cost of housing – it all contributes,” Cleary said.

The program is supported mostly by the community, with regular food donation boxes set up around the district, and most ConVal towns contributing an annual donation through their budget process.

Three times a year, the program partners with the Peterborough Fire & Rescue to host food and donation drives. The next drive kicks off on Saturday, Jan. 11, at Shaw’s in Peterborough, with the traditional “Stuff an Ambulance” event, where food donations are loaded into a Peterborough ambulance for delivery to End 68 Hours of Hunger. The kickoff day will be followed by a month-long food drive with extra drop-off locations across the district.

In addition to the donations that the program relies upon, Cleary said the community helps in other small ways, such as volunteers helping pack bags and deliver food to schools across the district and shoppers going out of their way and out of town to shop at more cost-effective stores. They also include donating the plastic bags that the food is packed in – Market Basket bags are preferred because they’re typically the biggest --and relying on storeroom space in the back of the district SAU to store food and materials.

“The best thing is the community around this,” Cleary said.

Cleary said their most-recent drive, held in September to coincide with the start of the school year, was hugely successful not only in its goal of raising funds for the program – with about $1,100 in cash raised in addition to food donations – but in raising awareness of the program. She said since that campaign, coupled with other registration efforts, including streamlining the application process, there are almost 100 more students now signed up, compared to last year’s 155.

Cleary said it’s not unusual to see a boost in participation in the fall, but that this increase is unusual, and perhaps tied to the overall increasing cost of living.

The “Stuff an Ambulance” event will be held on Saturday at Shaw’s in Peterborough from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Representatives of Peterborough Fire & Rescue and End 68 Hours of Hunger will be collecting food and cash donations. There will be lists of needed items available for shoppers. End 68 Hours of Hunger’s wish list includes canned chicken, canned tuna, canned pasta, fruit cups, and macaroni and cheese.

Through mid-February, various businesses will be collecting food donations for End 68 Hours of Hunger. Collection sites include Alberto’s Italian Restaurant in Bennington, Rick & Diane’s Brick Oven Pizzeria in Antrim, Toll Booth Tavern in Francestown, Harvester Market in Greenfield, Common Place Eatery in Bennington, Hancock Market, Studio 105 Hair Salon in Peterborough, Dublin General Store, Grappelli's Pizza in Peterborough, Brady’s American Grill in Peterborough, Beepa and Lulu’s Restaurant in Peterborough and the Maple Station Market in Peterborough.

After February, collection bins are permanently stationed at the Peterborough Fire Department, Dublin Community Church, Union Congregational Church in Peterborough, Rick & Diane’s, Bixby Memorial Library in Francestown and Hancock Congregational Church.

Monetary donations are tax-deductible. Donations can be made by check to ConVal End 68 Hours and mailed to ConVal End 68 Hours of Hunger, c/o SAU 1, 106 Hancock Road, Peterborough. Donations can also be made online at end68hoursofhunger.org. Those donating online should specify that their donation is for the ConVal program.

To volunteer, contact Carol Cleary at 603-588-2468 or Linda Caracappa at convalnh@end68hoursofhunger.org.

Ashley Saari can be reached at 603-924-7172, Ext. 244, or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on X @AshleySaariMLT.