Every year North’s teachers go head to head against one another in the hopes of winning the annual Penny Wars. Teachers’ first hours competed to collect the most pennies between Oct.29-Nov.9 for The Big Feast on Main Street. This year $421 was raised.

“[The best part is] knowing that North is helping feed families on Thanksgiving,” TASC sponsor Dawn Jones said.

The class with the most pennies raised was math teacher Val VanDerBeck’s first hour. They collected $57.14 in pennies and had a total of $90 including silver coins and dollars. Although VanDerBeck has participated in Penny Wars every year, this is her first time winning.

“I think that it was just fun doing it,” VanDerBeck said. “The donut breakfast is a bonus but just knowing we helped feed that many more people at the Big Feast [is the best part].”

VanDerBeck’s first hour has 19 students and almost all of them helped in the collection of pennies. Just like previous years, teachers and students tried to sabotage the other teachers’ banks by putting silver coins and dollar bills into the bank, which causes it to go into the negative.

“[The hardest part was] forcing myself not to sneak out the negative money that people put in,” VanDerBeck said.

On the last day of the contest, senior, Victoria Miller’s mom brought to school $25 in pennies for VanDerBeck’s bank. The pennies felt like a solid brick.

“We like to help out the community and [my mom] is very involved when it comes to my school.” Miller said. “And we like to help the families in need, especially with the economy how it is this year.”