This past spring, Mary Correia-Bucko decided she wanted to hold a food drive for the East Haven Food Pantry. After talking about the idea with her family, though, her grandson, eight-year-old Connor Vece, wanted to make some adjustments.

“Connor is a good kid with a very gentle heart and we had lost our dog of 15 years and he’d never lived without her, so he wanted to do a pet food drive,” says Mary. “He had a little empty spot there and a void he wanted to fill. He says he did it for Cheetah.”

The pet food drive was so successful that the family told the East Haven Animal Shelter they would host another in the fall, which was recently held. Even with the success of the pet food drives, Mary still wanted to return to her original idea of collected food for the East Haven Food Pantry.

On Sunday, Nov. 14 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., Mary and her family will collect non-perishable items at their home, 84 Dodge Avenue, in an event they have dubbed “Can-the-Van.” Mary’s husband, Matthew Bucko, saw how quickly their vehicles filled up at the pet food drive.

“When I was talking about it, my husband jokingly said, ‘Are we going to can the van?’ and it stuck,” says Mary. “In the community, there are a lot of people who don’t have everything they need and they don’t always say something. At some point, we’ve all been there so I wanted to do the food drive to help out.”

As word spread about Can-the-Van, Mary began to see community support. One of the members of The Good Things About East Haven Facebook page will be joining Mary with an old truck as well.

“Our goal is to fill the van and we’re going to try to fill the truck, too,” says Mary. “We’ve already gotten some donations, so I think we’ll meet our goal.”

While the collection will be held on Nov. 14, anyone who cannot make it during that time can reach out to Mary at 203-600-5862 about dropping off items at a different time. Checks payable to the East Haven Food Pantry as well as cash donations will also be accepted.

Mary made several connections with local groups through the pet food drives and she is looking forward to reconnecting with them for the food drive. The Hole in the Wall motorcycle club as well as the CT Beach Cruisers, a group of Jeep enthusiasts that often participate in motorcades, have played a key role in the pet food drive and Mary is looking forward to them joining in on Can-the-Van.

“The CT Beach Cruisers alone filled a whole van full of dog food, so I can’t imagine what they’ll do for can drive—they come down the road in their motorcade with their horns blowing, whistles tooting, the whole nine yards,” says Mary. “Hole in the Wall Motorcycle Club makes big donations and they said they’ll be here with a check. I can’t wait to see what happens.”

Mary has high hopes for Can-the-Van after the success of the two pet food drives. At the first pet food drive in April, the Mary, Connor, and their family collected more than $3,000 along with four van loads of donated items for the East Haven Animal Shelter. In addition, Mary created three decorative wreaths that were auctioned off with proceeds being donated as well.

Connor’s efforts caught the attention of local media and Ashely Baylor at WTNH did several stories on him and attended both his pet food drive in the spring as well as the drive a few weeks ago, which raised $1,700 and two truckloads of supplies.

Connor’s story was shared in the media and Mary received a Facebook message from a representative from The Drew Barrymore Show about Connor being featured on her Drew-Gooders segment. Connor and his grandfather recently traveled to New York City for the filming of the show.

“They picked him up at Grand Central in a car to take them to the studio where he had his own little dressing room with his name on the door—he thinks he’s a star,” says Mary. “Connor had a great time. He loves teddy bears and she had set up a whole Build-a-Bear studio on set and built a bear with him. She also made a significant donation to the animal shelter.”

Mary says she and Matthew are “second time around” parents as they are raising Connor and his two sisters, 11-year-old Gianna Park and 10-year-old Makenzee Vece. Mary grew up in Waterbury, but has lived in the area for the past 25 years. Her children attended East Haven schools and now her favorite part about living in town is her grandchildren’s school community at Momauguin Elementary School and those in the community.

“Everyone at Momauguin always works with the kids and helps and encourages them,” says Mary. “I love our neighborhood near Memorial Field and the way people are always there for each other. Who ever thought there would be a traffic jam on Dodge Avenue because we’re collecting dog food?”

Those waiting to make donations weren’t without entertainment as Mary’s daughter Autumn Karpel was dressed up as a dog and running up and down the street. Now with the food drive, she has a macaroni-and-cheese costume ready to go. Connor is also excited to be involved and will be running a stand selling hot cocoa and treats. Mary will also be raffling three winter-themed wreaths.

One of Mary’s favorite things about the donation drives has been seeing the way her entire family has stepped up to help. She has loved seeing the way her daughter and grandkids are choosing to help people, something that Mary learned from her dad when she was young.

“My dad instilled compassion and humor in us growing up and I live by that and try to teach them that it’s good to help others and do good things,” says Mary. “When you do good things, you get good things. With the outpouring of East Haven residents who came for dogs, I can’t imagine they won’t show up for humans. I know the people around here so I know Can-the-Van will be as successful. I want to fill this van to the top.”