This is the first story in our new series celebrating the Community Champions we’re proud to work alongside with in the fight against childhood hunger. It takes a village to nurture our kids. Join us, as we share the stories of the fierce advocates who work tirelessly to improve the lives of children in the communities they love.
This month we honor a special school administrator, Kimberley Grasby, who goes above and beyond each day for the students of Norway Junior Public School – with a kind heart and generous spirt, Kim is ensuring all kids are well-fed and ready to learn by operating the Power Full Kids Eat Well program at her school.
Before Norway Junior Public School had any nutrition program, Kimberley Grasby began to bring in apples and oranges to keep in the office, offering to anyone that needed a snack. As a parent, she knew the importance of a full tummy during the school day and wanted to provide that to students who were in need. “Food can sometimes be an after-thought and has a bigger impact than you may think” explains Kim. “When your tummy is full, you’re able
to focus better and improves your energy and behavior - it effects our overall well-being - so it’s important that we can provide that for our students.”
As the need for food grew, Kim knew a larger program would be needed to support her students. With the help of President’s Choice Children’s Charity, a full snack and lunch program was established - providing essential food access to at-risk students. “The Power Full Kids Eat Well program allows us to help our school community with a well-balanced meal each day and helps remove the social stigma of food insecurity” Kim says. “When you see the relief on a child’s face when you offer them a snack when they are hungry is priceless”.
Not only is Kim dedicating time to organize a universal meal program during the week, she grocery shops on her weekends, enlisting the help of her husband to drop off food each week to be assembled into meals. It’s not a part of her regular duties, but Kim gladly takes on the extra responsibility because of the strong relationships and trust she has built with the children. She’s witnessed the positive impact this program has made on the students, and hears directly from grateful parents, happy that their children are excited about eating more fruits and vegetables.
“The power of food is everything! If one of our student feels comfortable coming to me for something to eat, they’ll also come to the office for other things - they know they are in a safe space and that makes all the difference”.
Thank you, Kim, for dedicating your time and energy to nourish the tummies and hearts of the kids at your school.
If you’ve been inspired by this work and would like to support it, please consider donating today at pcchildrenscharity.ca.
