Last weekend, 285 members of the Mercer Island High School band program collected more than six tons of food in support of Mercer Island Youth and Family Services (MIYFS).

“Congratulations to all of our band students for displaying and modeling what it means to be a good citizen and community partner,” said Mercer Island School District Superintendent Dr. Gary Plano.

“I am very proud to teach students with a passion for service and a commitment to helping those around them,” said MIHS Band Director Parker Bixby. “The MIHS Band recognizes that our community provides us with extraordinary opportunities and we feel fortunate to be able to help MIYFS and Northwest Harvest provide support to families in need.”

The effort by the band program was led by senior Mary Wingerson, who stressed that the food bank is still welcoming donations of non-perishable items and perishable items through arrangements with the MIYFS coordinator.

“This is one of the largest donations of food that MIYFS receives all year and it carries us through the hard winter months. We really can’t thank these students enough,” said Cindy Goodwin, Director of MIYFS. “The food bank use on the Island has quadrupled in use since 2008 and it is food donations such as this that allow low income families and seniors to maintain healthy meals.”