Staff at St. Clement Catholic School were out in force on Monday, handing out lunches to those in need. Grade One Teacher Julie Howatson says they packed up and handed out lunches filled with water, sandwiches, fruit, vegetables, and snacks.
She says it’s part of a wider Grande Prairie and District Catholic Schools initiative known as Faith Day, a day staff use for personal development and growth.
“We are close to downtown, so we see what the need is around our area, and to just be a part of helping out, especially today, was just amazing,” she says.
“Each school in our district came up with their service project, and ours was the bagged lunches.”
Howatson says traditionally, Faith Day is held earlier in the year, but having it on the last day of school in 2021 allowed them to involve students.
“That was part of their art project this week, [with] every class given bags to write simple messages like ‘you are loved’; beautiful pictures, just something inspiring,” she says.
She adds the recent spike in temperatures could have potentially made the need for the bagged lunches much greater.
“There were a lot of needs this morning, and they were so gracious, and they were so kind,” she says.
“When you’re doing this, you don’t realize how lucky you truly are.”
$400 worth of food used for the bagged lunches was donated by Whitewater Management.