Food Drive Leader Guide

At a Glance

Who Does What

• Event lead: Will Mau. Works with the Rotterdam Community Center and answers questions.
• Saturday fliers: the Cubmaster and Pack 3054 den leaders, with Cub Scout families.
• Sunday routes: the Scoutmaster, with Troop 3054 Scouts and adult drivers.
• At the RCC: RCC staff open the building and show us where things go. A sort lead runs the tables.
• Greeters: a Scout and an adult at the drop-off, thanking people and taking donations from their cars.

Saturday, November 7: Fliers

1. Get your bundle of fliers and your street list.
2. One flier per house. Get creative so it stays put: tuck it into a screen door, the door handle or the frame, or under the doormat with a corner showing. Nothing in or on the mailbox; postal rules forbid it.
3. Skip houses with a "No Soliciting" sign, and skip apartments and condos unless the manager has said OK.
4. If a neighbor hands you food, say thanks and give it to your adult to bring to the RCC on 11/15.
5. We don't collect money. If someone offers cash or a check, thank them and let them know we're only collecting food.
6. Stay on sidewalks and driveways, cross streets together, and finish in daylight.
7. When you've finished your route, report in to the Cubmaster, then ask if another route needs to be done.

Cub Scouts stay with their own adult the whole time. Lions and Tigers always work with their adult partner.

Sunday, November 15: Pickup Routes

1. Meet in the Jefferson Elementary parking lot, 100 Princetown Rd. Routes go out between 8 and 9 AM, and each car gets one. Drivers, grab some extra bags from home; we'll have a few if you run short.
2. Drivers who RSVP get added to a group text for the morning, so you can reach the event lead if a street is blocked or your car fills up.
3. Each car is an adult driver with two or more Scouts, or a parent with their own child.
4. Drive the route slowly with your hazard lights on. Scouts hop out to grab each bag and hop back in.
5. Pick up bags at the end of driveways only. No bag? Keep driving. Don't walk up to houses, knock or ring doorbells.
6. Double-bag anything torn or wet.
7. When the car is full or the route is done, drive to the RCC (it opens at 10 AM), unload, and head back out if streets are left.
8. One sweep car makes a last pass on every route after the others finish, to catch bags set out late.

Safeguarding Youth: no adult is ever alone with a Scout who isn't their own child, and that includes in a car.

Sunday, November 15: Drop-Off and Sorting at the RCC

Rotterdam Community Center, 705 Curry Rd. Open 10 AM to 1 PM.

1. Attendance: leaders take attendance, so everyone's service hours count. No sign-in needed.
2. Greet and unload. Scouts take donations from cars at the drop-off spot and carry them to the sort tables. Food only: if someone offers money, thank them and let them know we're only collecting food.
3. Sort by type, the way the RCC asked: pasta and rice, canned beans, canned fruit, canned vegetables, soups, peanut butter, cereal and oatmeal, and everything else.
4. Blessing Box bin: set aside glass jars and a mix of other items for Christ's Church of the Hills. We'll hold the bin or drop it off at the church.
5. Check dates: anything opened or expired goes in its own box for RCC staff to decide.
6. Count: once everything's sorted, we tally it up together as a group, so we can share a total with the RCC and our families.

Photos: the RCC may take pictures for a press release. Only photograph Scouts whose parents have said yes.

What to Bring and Wear

• A Scout shirt or unit T-shirt, layers, rain gear and gloves. We go rain or shine.
• Water and a snack.
• Drivers: an empty trunk or back seat, a charged phone, and some extra bags from home.

Supplies

Fliers, street lists, tally sheets, a few spare bags, box labels and markers, tape, and boxes or bins for sorting (ask the RCC what they have).

After the Drive

• Log service hours: Troop 3054 families in the troop app, Pack 3054 families in Scoutbook. Hours count toward Scouting America's Impact365.
• Scouts who take part can wear the Impact365 National Day of Service emblem.

Spreading the Word

We only have so many Scouts, so the drop-off is the big push this year. Everything points people to troop3054.org/food-drive, and the drop-off poster, social media image and fliers are ready to download there.

Questions? Contact the troop. Back to the food drive page.