NIVERVILLE, Man. — Grade 5 students at Niverville School helped fill a trailer with 1,300 pounds of groceries on Oct. 12 as part of their school’s contribution to Drive Away Hunger.
Since 2004, the FCC’s national food drive campaign has collected 5.2 million lb. of groceries for food banks across the country.
Most comes through its tractor tour where a tractor and trailer arrive in a rural community to collect food. In 2011, FCC will run the tour in Manitoba and British Columbia in addition to Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia. It also collects food at its offices across Canada.
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Wade Nerbas of FCC in Steinbach, Man., said Niverville School is one of many schools, community groups and businesses in southeastern Manitoba that will donate more than 50,000 lb. of cereal, beans, macaroni and other non-perishables to food banks in the region.
Nerbas got involved with the campaign several years ago after attending an FCC conference.
“A fellow who’s a 40 year vet of FCC, a big, burly guy, stood up and broke down. He said, ‘I’m doing this because there are hungry kids out there.’ That moment is what impact- ed me,” Nerbas said.
“It’s something that is near and dear to me. I don’t know what it is, but this is what tugs on me.”
Judy Hiebert, Niverville School principal, felt the campaign fit well with October’s theme of nutrition.
“Healthy eating helps us have energy to learn and be active,” she said. “It brings awareness and helps kids reach outside their own home…. It builds social responsibility.”
“What I really like about this is that the community gives to their own community,” Hiebert said. “The community knows all this food will stay (here).”
The school’s donation will go to Niverville Helping Hands, a food bank and financial counselling centre in town.
“The big emphasis for us is, where it’s collected is where it stays,” said Nerbas.
Drive Away Hunger supports eight food banks in southeastern Manitoba.
