District 31 Wellington RTOERO donate to school nutrition program Food and Friends

Healthy donation – Teachers know the importance of a belly full of nutritious food to student learning, and retired teachers haven’t forgotten. District 31 Wellington RTOERO (formerly the Retired Teachers of Ontario), donated $2,500 on Nov. 25 to the Food and Friends school nutrition program, run by the Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington.

Anne Smith is president and Goodbrand vice president of Distrct 31.

“As educators we continue to support student learning and recognize that learning starts and improves when children are not hungry,” Goodbrand stated in an email.

Turner said demand for the food program has at least doubled since the pandemic began and the program switched to Food and Friends at Home. More children, higher food costs, and added food packaging and delivery expenses have caused the cost of the program to grow exponentially, she said.