Stevenson Give-A-Thon bigger than ever

Members of the National Honor Society were in the holiday spirit Tuesday, wearing Santa hats and reindeer antlers as they wrapped presents, organized bicycles, and boxed food at Stevenson High School.

The Lincolnshire school held its 31st annual Give-A-Thon, with a record-breaking effort of providing gifts to 320 Lake County families during the holiday season.

"Every classroom has classroom leaders that carry out the mission of the drive. They motivate the students to bring in money, to bring in food items and run games to get them excited about the process," said Brett Erdmann, Stevenson's community service coordinator. "Every year, it's just amazing to see all this pile up as a culmination of the students' efforts. It really is a grass-roots type of event."

Some students walked in with bikes, while others had arms loaded with colorfully wrapped gifts. Another group dropped off boxes filled with peanut butter.

"It's phenomenal seeing all these gifts going to families that really don't have enough money to buy their own kids Christmas gifts," NHS member Eric Ren said as he stuffed large plastic bags with holiday presents. "It's just great seeing everything here and being part of something that's a lot more than just one person donating something."

Stevenson staff and students also contributed six months of food to the Vernon Township Food Pantry and helped Lake County PADS by giving diapers, baby formula and other maternal items.