The Belleville Town Council recently recognized Belleville Middle School students for placing second in their District in a statewide canned food drive.

Students collected over 1,800 cans of food for the local food pantry at St. Peter’s Church. The can drive was organized by the Builder’s Club of Belleville Middle School and sponsored by the local chapter of Kiwanis.

The students began collecting cans in September for “Students Change Hunger.” The drive continued until December when the cans were taken to St. Peters.

The cans were donated by the faculty and students of the Middle School with Mrs. Dawn Buccino’s and Mrs. Joan Protomastro’s students accounting for almost half of the total.

The Builder’s Club members and advisors, Mrs. Maria Calhoun and Ms. Marta Davi, were touched by the generosity and dedication to the local community. The cans collected during the drive were distributed for the holidays to local needy families with the help of Knights of Columbus.