Hoquiam High School Takes Top Prize in National “Feed the Need” Program

LOS ANGELES - (Business Wire) Over 1.2 million pounds of food were collected from food drives around the country under Participant Media’s and DoSomething.org’s “Feed the Need” program, in which more than 26,000 young people took part. Participant Media, the leading provider of content that inspires and compels social change, and DoSomething.org, an organization dedicated to empowering young people to take action in their communities, partnered for the social action initiative inspired by the upcoming film The Soloist.

Throughout November and December, young people across the country registered their local food drives on DoSomething.org. Over 400 schools nationwide signed up, with individual schools collecting over 40,000 pounds of food. The five highest-collecting drives won $1,000 grants for an arts or music program for young people in their school or community and one grand prize winner also won a screening of The Soloist for their group.

Hoquiam High School, in Hoquiam, Washington took the top prize. "It's amazing to see the community pull together in needy times,” says Keaton Bradley, a junior at Hoquiam High. “Everyone was so supportive."

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“Students worked with local businesses to raise money and food; we did variety shows, staff competitions and many other creative things,” says Hoquiam teacher Bonnie Jump. “Hoquiam raised $12,000 in one day alone. It's the most amazing display of generosity that one can witness in our tiny community.”

Said Jim Berk, CEO, Participant Media, “We are thrilled by the fantastic response to our call to action to help 'Feed the Need.' Our alliance with DoSomething.org for the social action campaign for The Soloist is a perfect example of how we leverage our entertainment projects to activate change and make a difference in the lives of others.”

“We set a goal of one million pounds of food, and these kids blew it out of the water,” said DoSomething CEO Nancy Lublin. “DoSomething provides the support, but the energy and initiative is all theirs.”

Opening April 24, The Soloist is the true story of the friendship between Los Angeles Times columnist Steve Lopez (Robert Downey, Jr.) and Nathaniel Anthony Ayers (Jamie Foxx), a Juilliard-trained musician who is now homeless and playing his music on the streets of downtown L.A. www.takepart.com/thesoloist