Meet Sara, a Grade 12 student from Toronto!

Sara is one of our Agents of Change student ambassadors, she represents over 160,000 children in Toronto who use nutritional programs a day in Tor...

Sara is one of our Agents of Change student ambassadors, she represents over 160,000 children in Toronto who use nutritional programs a day in Toronto!

Christine from Amidst the Chaos got to interview Sara about her involvement in the student nutrition program at her school and how she is helping raise awareness among her peers.

At the Agents of Change summit in Toronto on February 8th, Sara encouraged all of the sponsors, brands and retailers in the room to visit a school & see the nutritional programs effects first-hand.

Sara shared with Christine, "I’ve met a few people that come to school with nothing to eat. For example, I know a boy that even when he didn’t have dinner the night before, would give his lunch to one of his two younger sisters so that they could eat. When I first met him, he would only eat breakfast from our breakfast program and survive on that till the next morning."

These nutrition programs do more than just feed the hungry, the community is coming together, people are being built up...

Read Sara's full interview with Christine.

Help Us Make Breakfast a Reality for a Hungry Child

Chasing dreams should be part of every child’s day. Going without breakfast shouldn’t be.

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We are so grateful to Canadians who support Toonies for Tummies during our annual store campaign and, year-round, online.

You may know on April 16th, the Federal Government confirmed plans to support student nutrition programs. Specifically, the budget has announced the creation of a National School Food Program, which will provide $1 billion over five years to Employment and Social Development Canada, Crown-Indigenous Relations and Northern Affairs Canada, and Indigenous Services Canada, starting in 2024‑25.

You may wonder what does this government funding mean specific to the need and our efforts to fundraise?

Without a doubt, we continue to need your support. While many student nutrition program leaders are encouraged by the incremental government support, many have taken to the news and social media to confirm even with this support, funding gaps will persist.

The Grocery Foundation's Vision, that no Canadian child goes to school hungry, remains fully intact. Our work continues and remains vital to support hungry children through their school’s student nutrition program. There is no change whatsoever in our focus, our mission, or our reliance on your support.

The programs we help fund are universal in nature. That means all children who require a healthy meal have access. Those on the front lines of these programs affirm their positive impact and positive halo beyond the day’s nutrition, from attendance, behaviours to the school community and mental health. The programs you help fund also support foundational nutrition knowledge and social skill building, as many programs include mechanisms for student involvement in menu planning, food preparation and serving of food to peers.

Thank you for choosing to support hungry children in your community, nourishing their health, well-being, academic success while fostering their school community. With your continued support, we will continue to help dreams take flight and nourish over 3,000 programs and neighbourhoods, yours among them.