Toonies for Tummies helps keep Surrey students fed and learning

They say breakfast is the most important meal of the day and nowhere is that truer than at Mary Jane Shannon Elementary.

On any given school day, more than 30 students arrive before class to enjoy a warm, nutritious and complete breakfast provided by the district’s School Meals Program as part of the school’s Breakfast Club.

As a place open to any students who need it, Mary Jane Shannon’s Breakfast Club is full of smiling and friendly faces each morning, and students are provided offerings like fruit, sandwiches, yogurt, and milk to help fuel that day’s learning.

The meal program is just one of many across the Surrey School district that benefits from funds raised by Toonies for Tummies, a campaign currently underway by the Grocery Foundation to ensure no student goes hungry.

With donations currently being accepted at several grocery chains across Canada, all funds raised will go to the Breakfast Clubs of Canada to fund programs like the one at Mary Jane Shannon. And it’s those donations that students rely on to start their day right.

“It helps create a positive start to the day,” said Linda Chau, principal at Mary Jane Shannon Elementary. “When kids come in hungry, they’re deregulated and unable to focus on instruction and so they aren’t classroom ready. They can’t feed their brains until they nourish their tummies.”

According to Chau, students who take part in the program may be attending for a variety of reasons, but regardless of situation, the program is available to any and all.

“The circumstances around why these children participate in the breakfast program really varies. Our goal is to ensure that those kids that need a warm breakfast, have access to one,” explained Chau. “Sometimes we have older siblings who are taking care of their younger siblings for the morning and so they’re able to come here and have their breakfast, maybe practice some language and conversations depending on their backgrounds, and it’s one less thing for the family to worry about.”

The program is something near and dear to Chau, who herself benefited from a similar program when she was a child attending school in Vancouver.

“I grew up in East Vancouver and when I see these children, I see myself and my sisters and how we would attend our school’s version of the Breakfast Club each morning,” she said. “Without programs like this, I don’t think I would have been ready to learn at school. Now I get to service the community the same way that it served me.”

To learn more about the Grocery Foundation’s Toonies for Tummies program, including how to donate, click here.

“This type of program wouldn’t be possible without donors and we’re so grateful to all of them,” said Chau. “We have so many donors that allow our meal program to operate, and it makes all the difference to these children.”

The Grocery Foundation’s Toonies for Tummies program is just one of many donors that support meal programs across the Surrey School District. Donors that support meal programs include Super Save Group, Vancouver Sun Children’s Fund, Breakfast Clubs of Canada, PC Children’s Charity, PCI Developments, and Zenterra Developments.

On behalf of the district, thank you to all of our donors for helping us support our students and giving them such a great start to their day!

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