Pryor High School Students Collect ‘Comfort Closet’ Donations To Serve Their Classmates

A group of Pryor High School students are collecting donations for classmates at their school. 

"We are not doing this for numbers or to know how many people we are helping. It is just to know that we have the opportunity to help whoever may need it. Even if it is just two people that come into the Comfort Closet, it makes a big impact," said Pryor High School Freshman Kennedy Lewis. 

Food, fresh clothes for every school day, toiletries, hair products, a prom dress--those are luxuries for some students.

"You really do have a new perspective of what is going on around you," said Kennedy. 

Making a difference in the lives of those students, who might need a little help, is a cause these Pryor students and their teachers can get behind.

"I have had friends in the past who have struggled at home, so I think I am doing it more for them," said Pryor High School Freshman Bethany Craig. 

They helped start the Comfort Closet and a Food Bank at their school then put in the hours to keep them both running. 

"We set it up in a classroom so the kids can go up and get what they need. It is in a section of the school that not many people go down so they can have their privacy if they are embarrassed or anything," said Pryor High School Freshman Zackery Standlee. 

"We can get a number of how many people are in their family and we have a little chart that we look at and we pack meals, like 3 meals for at least 7 days," said Pryor High School Senior Madison Kammerzell. 

The Comfort Closet is packed with everyday necessities. The food bank is filled with donations ready to be boxed up by volunteers and picked up by students in need. The kids partnered with the American Legion in Pryor so all the donations they collected throughout the year will go there for the summer to be used. 

Community members, local businesses, teachers, parents, and students have donated and plan to start the project back up in an even bigger way, next school year.