Velocity West Autogroup, formerly Knight Automotive, donated $15,000 toward nutrition programs at three Moose Jaw schools last week, money that the school’s principals say will make a big difference.
“This isn’t just for lunch, it would be for breakfast and snacks, and Hunger in Moose Jaw provides some of our lunch programming, as well, and so it’s kind of a little bit of everything to help the nutrition program in our school,” explained Robin Heshka, principal of William Grayson School.
“A nutrition program includes staffing, training for the staffing, obviously the food, but the appliances to cook it, and you know all of those things impact that budget line. And so, partnerships like this with Velocity Ford are definitely needed and greatly appreciated by all of us.”
On behalf of the company, Jason Fowlie, Service Manager at Velocity Ford, said the autogroup has been part of Moose Jaw’s fabric for many years and wants to continue that tradition.
“A thriving community starts with ensuring that every child has the opportunity to learn and grow, and that includes meeting their basic needs,” Fowlie said. “This contribution is not just about providing food, it’s about investing in the potential of our children.
“Thank you to the administrators, teachers, and volunteers at Prince Arthur, Empire, and William Grayson, thank you to the children who inspire us every day, and thank you to the community of Moose Jaw for allowing us to be a part of your journey.”
“Each of us does have a separate program and snack program based on the needs within our school,” said Sandra Baldwin, principal at Prince Arthur School. “Prairie South does a very good job of supporting some of that work. But with the way things are now with food costs and things like that, there’s just a greater need than we can provide. And so, partnership like this are incredibly important to our families and our schools.”
Gillian Crocker, principal of Empire School, said that Velocity Ford general manager Lawton Wong reached out at the perfect moment, as the schools were reaching the very last available dollars for nutrition programs.
“Obviously, this makes it a lot easier to not have to juggle around funds and try to figure out where we're pulling them from in order to be able to continue our breakfast program at the same level and snack program on the same level, and ensure that all the kids are fed.
“We never want to turn anyone away, so this really helps to ensure that we never have to do that. We really appreciate that they thought of us, and it’s very gracious.”