Bloomfield Hills Schools Continue to “Make a Difference”

Every fall, all the schools in BHS collaborate on a district-wide community service project. Over the years, our school communities have supported various entities and completed different tasks, but each year the project entails an element of collected donations, combined with an in-person day of volunteering, which culminates on the nationally recognized day, Make A Difference Day. Each year, Make a Difference Day falls on a Saturday in late October. This year’s beneficiary is Micah 6, a Pontiac-based organization that supports locally-grown food for residents.

Last year, due to Covid precautions, there was no in-person component to the event. Instead, each school collected non-perishable food items to donate to Gleaners Community Food Bank. Students held contests, split up requested foods by categories, raised funds, and made it a special event within their own buildings. What they might not have realized was just how much they collected as a whole!

Earlier this summer, Katie Body, a member of Gleaners, contacted Lara Alami, the PTOC Committee Chairperson for Make a Difference Day, to share that Bloomfield Hills Schools received the Hunger Heroes certificate for donating the most pounds of food to Gleaners in 2021. Body told Alami, "I’m happy to tell you that this year, BHS donated more pounds of food than any other school district! What an amazing event your Make a Difference Day is! The pounds BHS donated has provided more than 7,000 meals to our hungry neighbors in need."

This year Bloomfield Hills Schools is partnering with Micah 6, a community based in Pontiac that focuses on growing food for its residents, and selling it at local pop-up markets where grocery stores are scarce. They are in need of garden tools and help cleaning up their gardens for winter. Bloomfield Hills Schools is collecting funds to help fulfill Amazon wish lists that Micah 6 created. Each school has its own coordinator, assigned via their PTO. The event will culminate on Make a Difference Day, which is October 22, 2022, when we will hold our in person event. Students can volunteer to go to Micah 6 to help clean up their grounds. Some busing will be available. Families can drive separately if the bus reaches capacity. If you would like to donate, a supply wish list is available here. If you would like to sign up to volunteer, register today.