WHAT: The Pioneer High School Leo Club will put together Christmas food baskets for 200 Whittier-area families in need this Friday as part of its annual charitable giving event.

Over the last 11 years, students in the Leo Club, sponsored by the Santa Fe Springs Lions Club, have sold and made thousands of tamales to fund holiday baskets that include fresh produce, bread, dry goods and canned goods, as well as toys, for Whittier families in need.

Students will assemble the baskets on Friday, Dec. 18 in the Pioneer High School cafeteria and distribute them to families the following day.

WHEN: Preparation of Food Baskets at Pioneer High School Cafeteria — 1 to 5 p.m., Friday, Dec. 18

Distribution of Food Baskets at the Pioneer High School Cafeteria — 8 a.m. to noon, Saturday, Dec. 19

DETAILS: Families are selected by Pioneer staff and counselors and the principals and counselors of the elementary and middle schools that feed into Pioneer. To raise funds for the event, students sell 1,000 tamales, which were made on Dec. 12 by students and volunteers and distributed this week. Schools also held canned-food drives for the baskets.

Coverage of this event is welcome and greatly appreciated.

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