Unified cheerleaders fill Inside-Out shelves with peanut butter, jelly

A fan of James Clemens High School donates a jar of peanut butter at the Madison Bowl. Cheerleaders at Madison’s high schools challenged fans to donate peanut butter and jelly for Inside-Out Ministries. (CONTRIBUTED)

MADISON – The stadium wasn’t the only item filled to capacity for the Madison Bowl on Sept. 5. Both Jets and Patriots fans filled collection boxes with jars of peanut butter and jelly to help Inside-Out Ministries.

“James Clemens fans were encouraged to bring peanut butter while Bob Jones fans brought jelly” in an annual gesture of unity and service by both schools’ cheerleaders, James Clemens cheerleader coach Andrea Alexander said.

“Together, we donated to a great cause, Inside-Out Ministries,” Alexander said. Inside-Out reaches out to people temporarily having a hard time providing for their families.

Cheerleaders started the PB&J drive when Bob Jones’ population ‘split’ with James Clemens’ opening. “From the beginning, we all realized this rivalry was going to be huge,” Bob Jones cheerleader coach Zoe Williams said. “We wanted to direct attention of students to a cause that would give back to the community and provide for the greater good.”

Collections haven’t been tallied yet. However, Williams said they reached their goal “because somewhere in Madison someone is eating a meal, even if it’s a PB&J sandwich, who would have gone hungry without students and parents stepping up.”

For Madison’s cheerleaders, the drive heightened awareness that people in their hometown “are hungry with no place to call home … and there are needs greater than a Friday-night victory,” Williams said.

Inside-Out will take the PB&J, along with donated bread from Dollar General Market and Publix on County Line Road, to make quick, “fairly healthy” meals, Ward said. “How easy is it to purchase a jar of peanut butter that can feed a family of four about 20 servings? One extra jar/can goes a long way in helping.”

“Cheerleaders are reminding us we’re a ‘commUNITY’ when we all work together. We don’t have to give $1 million to matter. We never know if the next Mother Teresa is growing up right here in Madison,” Ward said.

Inside-Out’s address is 103 Gin Oaks Court. For more information, call 256-325-5193, email to info@inside-outministries.org or visit inside-outministries.org.