Don't cry fowl, cause these kids have learned how birds feed us.
Children from the Portage la Prairie area celebrated the culmination of the unique "Poultry Pals" program this week with games, food, and a deeper understanding of where their meals originate.
Hosted by Latanya Lewis on her homestead near Newton over several weeks this summer, the initiative aimed to show kids the real journey of chicken and eggs, moving beyond the grocery store shelf.
Throughout the program, youngsters witnessed chicks grow into full-sized birds, learned the differences between meat and egg-laying chickens, and gained hands-on experience with proper hygiene, feeding, and understanding a chicken's digestive system. Lewis marvelled at their enthusiasm for even the messiest tasks.
"I had never seen a group of children so eager to clean up bird poop," Lewis shares, giving her closing address to parents and participants.
The educational journey also included observing the butchering process. Lewis carefully managed this, ensuring the children saw the live chicken, watched as its head was placed headfirst into a bucket, and then observed the headless bird emerge. She reported the children were fascinated.
"The kids were very fascinated by the process, got to touch the slaughtered chicken, and were very eager to help pluck feathers off the processed bird," Lewis explains.
Her faith was also woven into the program. Reflecting on its importance in her life, she notes, "It's easier to tell them and to talk about the creator, to tell them we appreciate all the different things that he has done for us. Faith is important to me and my family, and whatever we do, it comes out."
Community support brings farm-to-table lessons to life
The program's success relied on crucial community partnerships. The Portage Community Revitalization Corporation (PCRC), specifically through Mitch Tilk, Local Immigration Partnership Program Coordinator, helped facilitate and secure funding.
"Latanya Lewis came to my office one day," Tilk recounts, "She knows that I support ethnic cultural communities and implementing different programming that they want to implement. She had this idea to pass her knowledge along to kids and demonstrate what sustainable agriculture means at the community level, and of course, we were all about it."
Finding funding fell to Southport Aerospace, which became the program's sole corporate sponsor.
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Dean Rennie, Manager of Business Development for Southport, explained their involvement aligned strongly with their corporate stewardship goals.
"This project under our corporate stewardship framework, it checked off five of the six requirements for approval," Rennie notes, listing active living and recreation, community support, diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility, education and professional development, and environmental sustainability.
He adds that, "We're happy to sponsor these kinds of programs, focusing on food security and food sovereignty. That's a very important piece in today's age, since you don't have that control over where your food comes from."
Celebrating success with bounces and feasts
The wrap-up event featured Lewis recapping the children's learning journey. The kids then eagerly enjoyed a bouncy castle and trampoline. Lewis and her family provided a supper feast, including traditional rice, corn, and chicken – a fitting conclusion to their poultry education.
Treats like cotton candy added to the festive atmosphere and the joy of the kids.
Lewis expressed deep gratitude for the support that made Poultry Pals possible.
"I just want to thank Mitch for believing in me and for putting my application out there, and thanks, Southport, for accepting and for granting all the resources that we needed," she said.
Reflecting on the program's impact, she added, "It was a lot of work. But it was work that was good for me, good for the children, good for the community."
Tilk further highlights the broader value of such initiatives, adding that, "Seeing the care that the kids are putting towards their animals here and getting to see, from the very beginning, where food really comes from, it's important lessons for all of us. The more we can grow our own food, the better we're all going to be."
The program will continue in the fall, with children returning to collect eggs and eventually take home turkeys they helped raise.
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