By GRAHAM BROOKS / Staff Writer

HELENA – As the holidays approach, one unfortunate problem many individuals and families may face is worrying about having enough food to put on the table.

Two local Helena schools are going to lend a helping hand in the coming weeks as Helena Elementary and Helena Intermediate will team up for the second annual bus driver challenge.

The bus driver challenge will be Monday, Nov. 26 until Monday, Dec. 3, and the goal behind the challenge is for students from both schools to bring in as many canned goods and non-perishable items on the bus they ride to school and in the end, the collected food will be donated back to the community and local food pantries.

During the weeklong challenge, boxes will be set up on each bus where riders may place their food items.

Each food item collected will count as one point for the driver of the bus. After the week is complete, the winning students and driver will be recognized by the schools.

Both schools are encouraging parents to help by sending their child with food for the challenge. Any excess food collected will be donated to a local food bank.

Last year, the inaugural bus driver challenge was an overwhelming success as both schools collected 5,423 cans to serve families in the community.

Items collected included soups, sugar, ramen, tuna, flour, rice, macaroni and cheese, beans, corn meal or biscuit or cornbread packets and more.