Hillcrest & Westowne Food Drive

When the school year ends, the free meals stop. For families at Hillcrest and Westowne Elementary Schools in Catonsville, that gap is real—and for the past three years, this drive has worked to fill it. The need has only grown: Westowne recently lost its Title 1 status, meaning the federal funding that once supported its most vulnerable families is gone, even as those families remain.

What started as a drive supporting a single school has grown into a full community effort serving two. The 2026 drive ran from May through early June, collecting shelf-stable foods, kid-friendly snacks, and pantry staples for distribution directly to families through the schools. As of the final collection day, one ton of food had been gathered, surpassing 2025’s total of 1,154 pounds, which provided care packages for 95 families across both schools.

The full scope of the project included graphic design for flyers and posters distributed throughout the community, a social media campaign with evolving weekly content across internal, external, and partner audiences, volunteer coordination, and all written communications including announcements, needs updates, and wrap-up messaging. The visual system was designed to feel approachable and urgent without being heavy-handed.

The goal was never just to collect food. It was to make giving feel easy, specific, and worth doing again next year.