The Nanaimo-Ladysmith Schools Foundation Food4Schools program held an open house on Wednesday, May 24 at their depot inside the basement of the long closed Woodlands Secondary School. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

By Jordan Davidson

food4schools

Rising number of Nanaimo students going to school hungry

May 24, 2023 | 4:16 PM

NANAIMO — A program feeding students in School District 68 is increasingly relied upon by students to ensure their stomachs aren’t empty during the school week.

Since 2018 the Nanaimo-Ladysmith Schools Foundation (NLSF) has been providing meals to an expanding list of schools to fuel their meal programs.

Usage of Food4Schools is surging, with roughly 2,000 students in 36 schools in the district relying on the program to ensure their stomachs aren’t empty in class, according to NLSF executive director Crystal Dennison.

“The prices of food have continued to go up, our rents have gone up. The Food4Schools program is kind of one way that we can take some of the pressure off of families. We’re so fortunate to partner with SD68 in providing this support to their schools and to their students.”

Dennison said their program is bolstered by a team of dedicated volunteers and non-profit agencies who help get food to those who need it.

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“We access food through bulk purchasing, we partner with the food bank and use some of the recovered food, we have partnerships with Breakfast Club of Canada… and schools are able to order groceries from us once a week, and we package up the food and we send it out to schools.”

In December 2020 Denison reported nearly 1,200 students were relying on Food4Schools.

The food is collected and packaged at the foundation’s depot, located in the basement of Woodlands Secondary School, where the walls are lined with fridges, freezers, and boxes upon boxes of food and school supplies.

From there, the hampers full of food are delivered to district schools by volunteers.

Plenty of cereal, granola bars, and other basic breakfast food is stored up and ready to be delivered at the Food4Schools depot. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW)

“We source all of the food, put it all together, and then bring it into the schools for them to be able to do their magic and serve anywhere from full hot breakfast to grab and go’s, to lunches, snacks.”

They also support schools by helping them acquire the necessary equipment to prepare and serve food.

With the spring school semester nearing its end, Dennison told NanaimoNewsNOW they’ll take stock of their program over the summer as they work to continuously improve their program.

Unfortunately, the need for these programs is not slowing down.

“We anticipate an increase in the number of students participating at schools. It’s a real way to take some of the pressure off of families and also give students a sense of belonging when they arrive at school and there’s something for them to eat.”

To donate or volunteer for Food4Schools, you can visit their website nlsf.ca, or give them a call at 250-753-4074.

A number of people took in the open house on Wednesday, May 24 to see the depot, meet the volunteers, and learn how the program works. (Jordan Davidson/NanaimoNewsNOW.com)

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jordan@nanaimonewsnow.com

On Twitter: @JordanDHeyNow