Bishop Carroll students haul in ‘amazing’ 30,614 cans in food drive
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Students at Bishop Carroll Catholic High School were able to collect 30,614 cans in a recent food drive. “There’s something special…
Oct 28, 2026
WICHITA, Kan. (KSNW) — Students at Bishop Carroll Catholic High School were able to collect 30,614 cans in a recent food drive.
“There’s something special about the love and care we can all show between one another in a little bit of friendly competition doing something just great for other people,” senior Emily Melcher said.
Our Daily Bread Food Pantry, part of Catholic Charities in the Diocese of Wichita, said the collection was perfect timing.
“We definitely have been seeing the need,” Director Tiffany Oltjenbruns said. “There’s been a great increase, and we’re able to serve the families because of the students’ help with providing food.”
For more than a decade, Bishop Carroll students have come together to gather as many canned goods as they can for the annual Feeding Families Food Drive.
“It always just really impresses me how into it people can get and how like sometimes, it feels like high schoolers are not motivated about a lot of things,” Melcher said. “And then you see that, just how a little bit of dedication can go a long way.”
For Melcher and other seniors who have helped out for years, it’s still a shocking sight when they see how much food they collect.
“Just seeing all these cans, it’s just really heartwarming,” Benedict Brandt said. “I bet everyone who receives these cans is going to be really happy. And I’m just excited that everyone was willing to participate and everyone fulfilled their goal.”
The goal for this year’s food drive was 27,000 cans, or about 18 per student taking part in the food drive.
Now Our Daily Bread will have plenty of food for the holiday season and beyond.
“It’s amazing,” Oltjenbruns said. “They’re able to provide at least six or seven months of food for the pantry. That helps us feed the families within the community.”
On top of helping those in need, the food drive also provides a great lesson for the students.
“Kind of shows them to get out of their bubble a little bit, realize that there are people in our community that do need assistance and that it is very important to get out there and help where they can,” said Chris Acton, Catholic Charities’ development manager.
Story featured by Zach Martin, KSN News