OXFORD – The Oxford Academy High School chapter of The National Honor Society has long participated in its fair share of community service efforts, and 2014's group is no different. This year, the organization has sponsored a series of food drives with a clever twist that incorporates the school’s sporting events.

On Thursday and Friday, the JV and Varsity girls’ and boys’ basketball teams will be busy doing their job up and down the court while the Honor Society members take part in a philanthropic effort to increase the amount of non-perishables that line the shelves of two local food pantries.

Specifically, in lieu of admission into this week’s games, attendees can opt to pay with non-perishable food items. Each year the Honor Society holds the food drive and this year, it couldn't have come at a more crucial time.

With the increased need for those less fortunate to prioritize heating their homes over spending cash on food, more families are turing to food pantries and churches to fill the gap.

“This is just one of the many things that our Honor Society student members do to contribute to our community,” said Jane Ford, an academic interventionalist in multiple content areas. “They do a lot, including participating nationally in the Cookies for Kids’ Cancer which raises funding for research to develop new, improved treatments for pediatric cancer.”