By Barbara Scott
Staff Writer
Grade two students in Beth Boone and Gayle Smart’s rooms, from Hilltop Elementary School recently vacated their classrooms and headed out on a very important mission. Traveling by school bus, their destination was the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen, where they excitedly departed the bus each carrying shopping bags laden with non-perishable food items, the result of a very independent food drive.
Aroostook Republican photo/Barb Scott
Second grade students from Hilltop Elementary School disembark from the bus which transported them to the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen where they eagerly donated bags of food items, gathered through a food drive they had organized. Please turn to page 12 for additional photos and story.
As part of their literacy program, the students had read a book entitled, “Pass it On” which, via the story the young students learned the meaning and value of volunteer work and the positive effects of doing something for someone else.
“The kids came up with the idea of a food drive,” said Beth Boone, who teaches second grade at the school. “As a result of reading this book and discussing what types of volunteering even children can do, the soup kitchen came into the conversation. A good number of the students really didn’t understand what a soup kitchen was — many thought it was where soup was made,” continued Boone. “When they decided they wanted to do a food drive, they made it clear that they would collect the food items by themselves,” said Boone.
As the second-graders entered the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen, carrying the items to be donated, they were greeted by Shirley Fortin, manager of the facility, who directed them to place their special gifts on a large table. As the table became a mound of bags filled with food, it was clearly noticeable on the young faces, how proud they were of their accomplishment.
Aroostook Republican photo/Barb Scott
Students in the second grade classrooms of Beth Boone and Gayle Smart at Hilltop Elementary were all smiles when they recently visited the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen. The young philanthropists organized a food drive and arrived in person to deliver their non-perishable food items to Shirley Fortin, manager of the local kitchen.
The students then were given a tour of the area, including the pantry where items are stored. Fortin explained how each of the items they had donated would be placed in the proper section of the pantry, ready to be given to someone in need or prepared on site. Following the pantry exploration, the Hilltop students were then led through the kitchen where meals are prepared and may be eaten there or taken home.
As the grade two students tried to take everything in, they proposed a number of questions to Fortin who patiently explained the operations of the soup kitchen and why it is needed in their community.
Several of the students noticed the wide assortment of small home decor items collected on tables in the rear of the main room and asked Fortin what they were there for. Fortin answered that those items along with other things were being assembled to be sold during the city-wide yard sale next month.
Other children had noticed a large bowl containing pieces of wrapped candy, which Fortin assured that is was okay with her for them to sample — as long as it was alright with their teachers.
Aroostook Republican photo/Barb Scott
Shirley Fortin, far left, manager of the Bread of Life Soup Kitchen in Caribou, listens as a questioned is asked by one of the second-graders visitors from Hilltop Elementary School. The students came to the local soup kitchen to donate food items and in return received a tour of the facility including the kitchen and storage pantry. The young visitors are students in the second grade classes of Beth Boone and Gayle Smart.
