Gearing up for the (now famed) canned food drive, Build A Wall Against Hunger, our Grade 4 classes enjoyed a zoom call with the Friends In Need Food Bank Executive Director, Ms. Mary Robson, who shared with students how the food bank helps and what types of food were best to collect. After a highly successful canned food drive – elementary school students donated 2,620lbs of canned goods! – Grade 4 classes began planning the next way to help. During the zoom session with Ms. Robson, students learned that 40 Maple Ridge seniors are currently supported by the food bank, and that they often don’t have some of the “luxury” items that the seniors really enjoy, like teabags and biscuits. Students wanted to help.
Using funds left over from the classes’ ‘Buy A Brick’ campaign, teachers Mrs. Chow, Mrs. Lum, and Mrs. Hamaguchi purchased tea and biscuits to package and drop off. The classes also had a terrific idea to make the packs a little extra special and more meaningful – handwritten jokes! Of this, Ms. Robson writes, “The project has brought a lot of cheer and warmed a lot of hearts. Kudos to them all. The jokes were a wonderful idea!” Next up, the students are planning a special February surprise. Stay tuned.