With a spirited competition between the Spartans and the Athenians, the students at Wakefield School in The Plains, Virginia gathered more than 1,080 pounds of food May 15 to benefit Seven Loaves Services, Inc., the food pantry in Middleburg, Virginia. The effort was sponsored by the school's Service Club and generated approximately 20 large boxes filled with apples, onions, carrots, oranges, bananas and potatoes.

"This was a wonderful effort on the students' part," said Melanie. C. Maloney, President of Seven Loaves, "especially because they brought fresh fruits and vegetables to us, which are often in short supply," she added. "Our mission is to provide nutritious food to our patrons in need," she continued, "and being able to provide fresh, wholesome produce is integral to that effort," she concluded.

The fresh produce drive was coordinated by Jillian Wise of Wakefield's Service Club and surpassed the prior year's effort by more than 200 pounds. "We are so pleased by the hard work of the students, and their commitment to helping those in need in our community," commented Ms. Maloney. "As far as I'm concerned, both the Athenians and the Spartans are classic paragons of virtue," she concluded.

Wakefield School is an independent college preparatory school whose goal is to provide a rigorous liberal arts education to students from Pre-K through the 12th Grade.