A Hackensack High School teacher is going above and beyond to make sure that his students are taken care of.

Kelly Carroll is a culinary arts teacher at the school. He says that since the pandemic he has been making sure that his students are coping.

“Instead of asking the question, ‘Why isn’t your homework done?’ I’m asking the question, ‘Are your parents working?’ “Are you able to get food?’ “Are you hungry?’” Carroll says.

Carroll says that he became increasingly devastated by the answers his students provided so he transformed his home into a food bank for the students. The donations have filled his home.

“I’m stepping over boxes in my living room. It doesn’t bother me a bit. Why? Because my students are being taken care of and that’s the No. 1 goal,” he says.

Hackensack has a population of about 45,000 people. Many are going hungry for the first time due to the pandemic. At least 220 Hackensack families – some 1,000 people – will be getting a week’s worth of groceries. Fellow teachers and friends are making deliveries.

Carroll says that he will keep doing this as long as he keeps getting the funding.

High school senior Lucia Ponce’s father works at a restaurant in New York. She is volunteering but also benefits. She says that as the pandemic and lockdown continue, she fears about the future.

“Where will life be after this? Even after the quarantine is over, how will humanity be itself?” she asks.

But if the amount of donations and volunteers at Carroll’s home is any indication – humanity will continue to thrive.