Pine View students to distribute 42,000 pounds of produce

The Pine View Key Club and Pine View Interact will team up 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, June 8 at Gocio Elementary to distribute 42,000 pounds of fresh produce and juices.

Farm Share is preparing the community distribution that is meant to help Sarasota families. Farm Share is a Miami based organization that receives donated produce from community members and sets up food distributions.

This will be the third food distribution of its kind to be organized by Pine View students to help struggling families in Sarasota.

Key Club president John Potvin and Interact Club president Josh Palmer spent two months leading in the organization of the distribution.

They raised $1,100 to pay for the transportation of the food from Miami, handed out flyers at churches and community organizations, teamed up with Gocia Elementary and made 800 bright yellow stickers they gave to children at Gocia at the end of the school day.

The stickers had information about the distribution informing parents where to go to pick up produce. Potvin says the distribution is meant for families who just need a break for a night or two.

Eighty Pine View students will volunteer to help distribute each bag of produce that contains anywhere from $10 to $20 worth of produce.

“The key is we are not going for homeless.” Potvin said. “The food is raw and uncooked, like onions, tomatoes and bell peppers it is for people who have a stove, who need a couple nights with a break.”

Students are expecting approximately 1,000 people and food that is not distributed will be donated to local food pantries.

“We are not only changing lives of people with food but the people who are helping as well, its service learning, its active,” Potvin said.

Both Potvin and Palmer graduated Pine View last weekend. Potvin will be attending the University of Florida and Palmer will be attending Vanderbilt University.