This week the School District of the Chathams launched the Cougars Care Cooler at Southern Boulevard School. Working with school district administrators, Sharon Neuner has spearheaded the Cougars Care Cooler initiative. The initiative seeks to keep leftover waste from school lunches out of the trash can and into the mouths of those in need. This week during lunch Southern Boulevard students were educated by Principal Marco Freyre on the purpose of the Cougars Care Cooler, then were given the opportunity to place any unopened packaged items in the cooler to be donated to the Chatham Community Food Distribution (CCFD) at the United Methodist Church on Wednesday. Freyre said, “The students were extremely excited to contribute to this initiative. Once I told the students that they were going to help those in need, the buy in was just tremendous. I'm so proud of this school community to help forge such a worthwhile project.” The program will continue each week through the end of the year.
The Chatham Community Food Distribution is a cooperative community operation which began in late April 2020. Fresh produce, milk, eggs, butter, bread and personal care products are distributed every Wednesday, rain or shine. Pastor Jeff Markay, and the United Methodist Church congregation host, facilitate and process donations. Borough Council Members Len Resto and Carolyn Dempsey volunteer each week, consulting with Jeff as part of the CCFD leadership, and provide updates to the Borough Council. Many community businesses donate and act as organizational partners to help fulfill the needs of the Chatham Community Food Distribution. Since inception, the School District of the Chathams has done many food collections at both the classroom and building levels to help fill the needs of the CCFD. The District is proud to expand our support of CCFD through the Cougars Care Cooler program. The District has a long history of Waste Free Lunch days that educate students on reducing food waste and packaging. This program goes a bit further to not only keep food waste out of the trash can, but offers students an opportunity to use their food for good. We are optimistic that the program can be scaled to all buildings across the District by the fall.
Resto shared, "This is such a win-win for all. Perfectly good food keeps from getting trashed and it ends up in the hands of those suffering food insecurity. It unites the student population with those less fortunate in more ways than one". Reverend Markay, echoed these sentiments. Dempsey praised Sharon Neuner for her benevolent history of finding a need and filling it. Dempsey expressed, “We are thrilled Sharon approached the CCFD with her idea of partnering with the School District of the Chathams to reduce food waste in our schools, and getting that food to neighbors who need it. We hope this pilot program can be expanded to include more of our schools in the Fall. ‘Waste not, want not!’”
Resto shared, "This is such a win-win for all. Perfectly good food keeps from getting trashed and it ends up in the hands of those suffering food insecurity. It unites the student population with those less fortunate in more ways than one". Reverend Markay, echoed these sentiments. Dempsey praised Sharon Neuner for her benevolent history of finding a need and filling it. Dempsey expressed, “We are thrilled Sharon approached the CCFD with her idea of partnering with the School District of the Chathams to reduce food waste in our schools, and getting that food to neighbors who need it. We hope this pilot program can be expanded to include more of our schools in the Fall. ‘Waste not, want not!’”
