Cheney Food Bank volunteer receives award from Spokane Valley High School
Cheney Food Bank volunteer Marion Hill (second from left) receiving his gift basket award as a "Hero of COVID" from Spokane Valley High School students (left to right) Saraiya Peacock, Chance Dierks, Ryder Deford and Jadyn Laughlin.
CHENEY - If the COVID-19 pandemic has revealed anything, it may be that real-life heroes are the people we see every day.
One of those is Cheney Food Bank's Marion Hill, who is among 10 Inland Northwest residents receiving a "Hero of COVID" award from students at Spokane Valley High School, the West Valley School District's alternative high school. The awards were created by the students as part of their project-based curriculum, working on it virtually due to pandemic health protocols.
According to information from the Food Bank, Hill is a U.S. Army veteran who worked for 30-plus years in the custodial supply field, and upon retirement, entered the real estate and banking market. He also drove a school bus for Cheney School District for 13 years, and has volunteered at the food bank for over 25 years.
"Marion is 80 plus years old, works four days a week, he runs the food rescue program," Food Bank president Jerry Stewart said in an email nominating Hill for the award. "Marion picks up food from supermarkets three days a week and helps with distribution the days we are open to the community."
The food rescue program - collecting produce and meats that are still useable but unsold from local supermarkets - has enabled the Food Bank to provide more than just boxed and canned food items to residents in need.
Students at Spokane Valley High School began their project last fall, contacting Stewart and other community group organizers in December seeking nominees for the award. According to a story in The Inlander, the 60 students worked in teams to gather the nominees, create a website so that the public could vote for the winners and collect ideas for basket items to give to award winners. The items were paid for by a small grant.
Other individuals receiving awards were a driver for Meals on Wheels, and emergency room doctor at Providence Sacred Heart Medical Center and a director at Canterbury Court Apartments in Spokane who helps seniors living at the facility with new ways to keep in touch with family and loves ones.
Hill was presented with his gift basket award on Monday, March 22, at Spokane Valley High School.
John McCallum can be reached at [email protected].
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