VIDEO: New Albany Community Feed

NEW ALBANY, Miss.(WCBI) – New Albany High School students took much of the responsibility for Saturday’s community feed at the Middle School.

There was music. There was Santa Claus.

The primary reason this crowd flocked to the Middle school cafeteria was the hot meal which high school students helped prepare and serve.

“It’s so important. They get to see all of the people in our community coming together. They have an opportunity to serve our community,”said teacher Leann Thompson.

Staica Massey is a senior at New Albany High School. She got a chance to greet visitors.

“I think people should have fun on Christmas. Some people don’t have families to come home to you know and I think it’s a good idea for people to come out of the house and half a good time. And this is a great way to interact with people and I think that’s good,”said Massey.

Avery Grace Shaw and Morris Kelly Clayton had dessert duty.

“I think it’s really important to come out and support community. I’ve been blessed to do a lot of service projects being in Anchor Club and I just really enjoy coming out and helping the community. I think it’s been very beneficial to me. It definitely helps me learn to manage time and manage priorities,”said Shaw.

“I think it’s important to stay involved in stuff like this to really put a different perspective on your own life. So I think it’s really good to help other people. I think it will just help with my responsibility level really being selfless and not putting yourself first before others,”said Clayton.

Normally these kinds of feeds take place during Thanksgiving time. Here in New Albany things worked out to be a little different and they have it during the Christmas season.

The first year their plan was to do a Thanksgiving meal but when they thought of they were a little too late and so it got bumped to a Christmas meal and there was really no hot meal offered at Christmas in our community

Thompson says they would not be able to put out such an incredible spread without the financial support of the Walmart Distribution Center.

“It’s important to give back to the community and make sure that everybody no matter who they are has a holiday meal and a joyous beginning to the Christmas season,”said Thompason.

Lankin agrees that giving high school students the chance to participate helps prepare them for the adult world.

“It teaches responsibility and needs and when to be there and you know help your fellow neighbor,”said Lankin.

Organizers expected to feed at least 15-hundred people at today’s event.