Overall Winner 2024
Hickory Day School
Hickory Day School took top honors in the Hickory Oktoberfest Susan Coleman 2024 Castle of Cans campaign collecting 2165 pounds of food!
2024 High School Winner
Saint Stephens High School
St. Stephens High School took top high school collection 2024 Castle of Cans honors collecting 950 pounds of food. Pictured with recognition are (front row) student council members Gage M., Lauren Y., Sydney B and Elliott G. Back row: Principal Kyle Stocks, Sarah Grave and Jean Bailey, student council advisor
2024 Middle School School Winner
Grandview Middle School
Grandview Middle School took top honors in the middle school collections with 349 pounds of food. Two classrooms earned Papa John’s Pizza Parties!
2024 Elementary School Winner
Startown Elementary School
Ms. Detter’s winning class
Startown Elementary School took top honors in the elementary school collections with 950 pounds of food. Pictured are Elizabeth Farris (left) school campaign coordinator and Cristy Detter, whose 3rd grade class earned a Papa John’s Pizza Party for the most cans collected. In the background is the muralist James Smith’s depiction in black outlines for the Castle of Cans in Startown’s hallway mural. Current and former students could add the color for a $10 per brick donation.
2024 Castle of Cans Outstanding Partner Award
Discovery High School
Carleen Crawford, Castle of Cans campaign coordinator presents the 2024 Outstanding Partner Award to Discovery High School’s Bryson Smith of the Student Senate. The group led the school can collection of 555 pounds of food.
FOOD LION FEEDS
Food Lion Feeds has been generously supporting the Hickory Oktoberfest Susan Coleman Castle of Cans Campaign for almost a decade! In 2024 they donated two pallets of food for the campaign. Pictured with the pallets at the Hickory Second Harvest Food Bank Hickory location are Castle of Cans Coordinator Carleen Crawford and Kelsey Nelson, Food Lion store manager at the Springs Road location.
Papa Johns Pizza generously supports the Hickory Oktoberfest Castle of Cans each year by providing pizza parties for elementary and middle school winning classrooms collecting the most cans for the school campaign.
The Hickory Oktoberfest Susan Coleman Castle of Cans is coordinated by volunteer members of St. Albans Episcopal Church.
Background: The inaugural food drive and castle build using collected cans occurred in 1999, and the initiative has expanded over the years. The concept to integrate community service into Oktoberfest was proposed by architects Beemer Harrell and Marvin Folger. Susan Coleman, an educator from Catawba County Schools and a member of St. Alban’s Episcopal Church, coordinated the food drive until her passing in 2013, after which the event was named in her honor. St. Alban’s Episcopal Church has since continued to manage the food collection for Hickory’s Downtown Development Association. Jan Knotts coordinated the campaign until 2019, succeeded by Carleen Crawford who has overseen the community campaign since then.
Who Benefits?
The following eight local agencies:
Ashure Ministry (formerly ECCCM), The Corner Table in Newton, Exodus Homes, Greater Hickory CCM, The Family Care Center, Hickory Soup Kitchen, Salvation Army, and Second Harvest Food Bank of Hickory. Collectively in 2024 they served more than 175k!
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