The kindergarten to Grade 8 students at Maple Ridge Public School in Powassan are pumped today.
The 281 students form a human chain and pass food from one another to volunteers at the Powassan and District Food Bank to restock the shelves.
The tradition was started 21 years ago by former Maple Ridge teacher Tammy Simpson to help ensure the food bank had enough supplies to give to needy people ,especially at Christmas time.
Simpson retired three years ago but in 2022 her daughter, Gracie Simpson-Malek, who now teaches at the school, took over the reins.
During December, Maple Ridge students bring various food items from home and each day has a different theme. For example, this year’s campaign kicked off with Macaroni Monday and students brought various kinds of pasta and tomato sauces to school.
Diane Cole, the food bank co-ordinator, says what the students do is “incredibly gracious.”
Cole said by this time of year the food shelves are low but the students’ human food chain “gives us copious amounts of food. And with so many students taking part, it gives us that food variety,” she said. In addition, the students collect women's hygiene and baby-related products and also bring in pet food.
“It warms our hearts to think the community thinks so much about food security in our town that they come together to make sure no one goes hungry,” Cole said. “There is great community spirit here. I’m in awe. People know there’s a need and that a good number of people come here.”
Cole said the food bank doesn’t weigh or count the food items the students collect. Rather they are put in bins and then the volunteers place them on the shelves.
The Maple Ridge Public School drive, combined with one later in the month by St. Gregory Catholic Elementary School students, will load up the food bank shelves and help support the agency through December and January.
Although in terms of numbers, the food bank doesn’t keep track of what’s brought in by the students, Maple Ridge does. In past drives, the students have easily amassed hundreds of food items plus several hundred dollars in cash donations.
School principal Marg McDiarmid said it's “a really good educational opportunity. A lot of these conversations happen in the classroom. It’s a great opportunity to talk about food security. It helps students and families understand that there are some families that need help and we want to do the best we can to help our community.”
One of the students involved in the human food chain is 12-year-old, Grade 7 student Maddie Milton. “It makes me happy that I’m helping people,” Maddie said.
“There are some people who can’t afford food sometimes because inflation has made food more expensive.” Maddie has been part of the food chain since she was a kindergarten student at the school.
For 13-year-old Wesley Windsor, this will be his last year taking part in the food chain. The Grade 8 teen graduates this year and said he will miss taking part in the event.
He has participated since he was a junior kindergarten student. “I think what our school does is a nice thing for the community,” Wesley said and added he’s looking forward to his last human food chain.
For Jasper Ballard, who is 12 and in Grade 7, this will be a first. He's a new student at Maple Ridge.
Along with several other students, he performs the daily responsibility of going from class to class to collect what the other students have brought to school. “I’m happy that we do this and are able to help people who don’t have much,” Jasper said.
At 9 a.m., today, all 281 students will make the three-block walk to 250 Clark St., where the food bank is located, and start the chain.
The food transfer will take about 30 minutes after which it’s back to school for the resumption of studies but not before the students get to enjoy some hot chocolate and candy canes in their respective classrooms.
Rocco Frangione is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter with Almaguin News. The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada.
