BARRHEAD - The Barrhead and District Family Community Support Services (FCSS) hot lunch program at Barrhead Elementary School (BES) received a much-welcomed boost last week thanks to the local Elks chapter.
The program provides affordable hot lunches to Barrhead Elementary School students. It began nearly 20 years ago when an FCSS worker visited the school and noticed several students without lunches.
At first, FCSS sent food to the school from the food bank but eventually transitioned to having local businesses prepare the lunches and then to where it is now, where long-time hot lunch coordinator Sandy McCarthy prepares the meals on-site.
On Sept. 27, the Elks donated $7,000 to McCarthy to help offset the rising cost of the program.
"It is getting difficult," she said. "We do everything we can to keep the cost affordable, but with the rising cost of groceries, it is impossible to keep up."
And that is a large part of the reason why FCSS decided to raise the cost per meal to $4, up $1 from last year.
McCarthy said they tried to hold the line for as long as they could, noting the price of the meal had not risen in several years.
The hot lunch program has roughly 160 students who regularly take part. However, McCarthy noted that it is still early in the year, and she expects that number to increase. For most of the 2021-2022 school year, she consistently had 180 students enrolled, not including about half a dozen extra lunches she makes for students that school staff feel need a lunch on a particular day.
It is also worth mentioning that not all students pay full price for the meals. For parents who cannot afford the fee, FCSS has a subsidy program available.
Even with the increase and the 10 per cent discount she receives through Pembina West Co-op, McCarthy says she has to shop and prepare her weekly menu wisely.
"I was lucky for today's lunch that I was able to find this that was 50 per cent off," she said, referring to chicken burger patty packages.
McCarthy added it wasn't just the cost of food that was the issue, but containers and utensils as well. Because of the single-use plastic ban, it is getting more difficult (not to mention costly) to find items such as styrofoam containers and plastic utensils to deliver meals.
And soon, she said, she will not be able to use them at all, adding that the alternatives, such as paper containers and bamboo, or wood utensils, are up to double the cost.
"That is why donations from organizations like the Elks mean so much," she said.
Program in jeopardy?
In February 2022, FCSS executive director Karen Gariepy told County of Barrhead councillors that the program was on the bubble, saying that with some luck and careful planning, the hot lunch program had enough money to last until the end of the school year.
However, she said that if they did not receive sufficient donations, the program could be in jeopardy for the upcoming school year.
McCarthy said that to prevent that from happening, FCSS sent out several letters to businesses and community organizations in the spring as part of a fundraising campaign.
Barrhead Elks members Bill Lane and Mark Donaghy said at a club meeting earlier in the month, members debated whether they should contribute to the program.
The pair said it wasn't much of a debate.
"They've (FCSS) made pitches to us before, and we know what good work they do in our community," Lane said. "(We also know) how important education is for our young people and how hard it must be for students to learn if they are hungry."
