Quinte West volunteer firefighter, Shane Struthers putting up signs on parking meters to help launch the 2015 Feed the Meter campaign.
Once again this year for the month of December, parking is free in three local communities – Picton, Trenton and Belleville. All funds collected in meters will be donated to support student nutrition Food for Learning programs in schools. Downtown shoppers were also offered free parking in both Trenton and Belleville while construction took place this fall, and the money that was collected will also be donated to Food for Learning’s 2016 Feed the Meter campaign.
More than 11% of the households in Hastings and Prince Edward counties are food insecure and they have one of the highest rates of food insecurity in the Province of Ontario. This means that people have difficulty obtaining sufficient, nutritious, personally acceptable food.
Food for Learning programs are important because research shows that children and youth who receive regular healthy meals and snacks at school are more alert, pay more attention, do better in school, and are healthier and more cooperative and disciplined. When a student arrives at school hungry and participates in a student nutrition program, they will maximize their learning potential through the school day. We know that students in our area arrive hungry for a variety of reasons – poverty, rushed mornings, long bus rides, etc. Regardless of the reason, the aim is to minimize the hunger faced by children and youth in our community, and the support received through the Feed the Meter campaign makes this possible.
In the 2015-2016 school year alone, Food for Learning provided 1,065,255 meals and snacks to 15,559 individual students through a student nutrition program! They anticipate these numbers will continue to grow this school year. As one local grade 8 student stated, “I love eating at school because when I am hungry I can’t learn. I know I can focus on learning when I have breakfast. Many students in our school go to Food for Learning and they feel the same way.”
All proceeds of the Feed the Meter campaign will be returned to the schools in the communities where the funds were raised and will be used to purchase groceries for the various programs in those communities.
This year’s goal for the Feed the Meter campaign is $50,000. Please Feed the Meter when visiting downtown Belleville, Picton, or Trenton this holiday season.
OR your donation can be mailed or delivered to:
Food for Learning
c/o The Hastings and Prince Edward Learning Foundation
156 Ann Street
Belleville, ON K8N 3L3
(please make cheques payable to The Hastings and Prince Edward Learning Foundation)
COMMUNITY BREAKFAST TO LAUNCH THE 2015 FEED THE METER CAMPAIGN
DATE: Friday, December 2, 2016
TIME: 7:30 a.m.
LOCATION: The Greek Community Hall, 70 Harder Drive, Belleville
