Aberdeen High School Bobcats score second victory in a row in 2017 Food Ball

Aberdeen and Hoquiam collected 15,000 pounds of food for local food banks

By Dan Hammock • November 15, 2017 7:00 pm
DAN HAMMOCK | THE DAILY WORLD An ecstatic group of Aberdeen High School students celebrate with their Bobcat mascot after being named the winners of the 2017 Food Ball competition Monday evening.
DAN HAMMOCK | THE DAILY WORLD An ecstatic group of Aberdeen High School students celebrate with their Bobcat mascot after being named the winners of the 2017 Food Ball competition Monday evening.

Aberdeen made it two in a row as the Bobcats bested Hoquiam High School in the 2017 Food Ball competition that ended Monday.

Records were smashed after the weigh-in at the Grays Harbor PUD office in Aberdeen. Aberdeen tallied 9,100 pounds of food, plus an additional 1,040 pounds from the sale of Safeway grocery bags — 104 of them at 10 pounds apiece. They also collected cash and checks adding up to an impressive $76,155.23. Each dollar counts for 10 pounds of food, so when added to the Bobcats’ total they wound up with 771,692.3 pounds.

“Foodball is a true community effort. It takes a commitment from students, staff, parents and business owners to make it run so smoothly,” said Ashley Kohlmeier, Aberdeen High School ASB adviser. “Th students worked for hundreds of hours leading up to the week of Food Ball, and their dedication showed in the final numbers.”

Kohlmeier participated in Food Ball while she was a student, and when she took over the ASB position two years ago, she vowed to improve how Food Ball was organized and run.

“My favorite memories as a student were during Food Ball, and I can say without a doubt, that my favorite memories as a teacher are during Food Ball,” she said. “Watching the students work hard, care about something that really matters and having fun while doing it is the best reward a teacher can get. To be a part of something that has such a rich history in our town is an amazing gift. I am honored to be able to give our community help in such a special way.”

Hoquiam also did extremely well in its efforts collecting food to be distributed to area food banks. The Grizzlies hauled in 3,550 pounds of food, 1,170 of the Safeway food bags for a total food weight of 4,720 pounds. They also collected $64,351.42 in cash, bringing their grand total to 648,234.5 pounds.

Last year’s Food Ball results had Aberdeen collecting 8,011 pounds of food to Hoquiam’s 4,262. Aberdeen took in $68,276.57 in cash and checks and Hoquiam $58,696.48. The totals last year had Aberdeen besting Hoquiam 690,776 pounds to 591,226.

This was the 36th installment of the contest. As all the students, faculty and staff say after each Food Ball, the real winners are the needy families in the region. Coastal Harvest will again distribute the collected nonperishable items to the food banks selected by the students of each school.