Food Bank Fundraiser: Norwell Reinvigorates Community Dinner Event
On Tuesday November 28, 2023 leadership students from Norwell’s Business Leadership class held an exciting and compelling community dinner event, reimplementing the cherished annual tradition following the Covid-19 pandemic. This community driven event was set in motion with the aim of raising money for four local food banks: Palmerston, Harriston, Clifford, and Drayton. Beyond financials, the event created warmth and pride, returning a general sense of togetherness to the community.
This year, Norwell’s business leadership students set a goal to raise $1600, with the ability to donate $400 to each of the food banks. Dinner tickets were sold for a low price of 5 dollars in an effort to increase the event’s accessibility. Within a few weeks of advertising, the dinner was successfully sold out. With ticket sales and donations at the door, Norwell was able to raise a grand total of $1300 giving $325 to each food bank along with a box of non-perishable food items to help stock their shelves.
The Community Dinner Event, organized and run by Norwell’s Business Leadership class was a tremendous success. Centered on a wonderful evening of community and camaraderie, the event created an opportunity for members of different communities to come together for a great cause. During the evening members of the school and community congregated no matter the age or demographic to create a sense of home in the Norwell cafeteria.
Principal Rowden had this to say, “It was heartwarming to see so many community members come to support our local food banks by participating in the fundraising dinner. There was great entertainment and the event was very organized. I appreciate all of the student work that went into creating the event, and the generosity of the community businesses that made donations.”
NDSS would like to extend its heartfelt thanks to our generous sponsors, the true backbone of the event. Thank you to Full House Farms who provided the potatoes, Harriston Farm Fresh Poultry Ltd who donated the chicken, Harriston Foodland contributed the vegetables, Palmerston Foodland provided apple juice and gravy, Listowel/Palmerston Tim Hortons joined hands to provide coffee and Blessings To You donated money to purchase all of the remaining food items.
Thanks are also in order for all of the volunteers that made the night possible, specifically to Bernie H and Ryder E for the spectacular performance that night leaving the audience entertained, and to Sonia in the cafeteria for her major role in orchestrating dinner preparations. Thank you to the Drayton U11 Rep D team for serving dessert to all of our guests. Lastly, thank you to the food classes for helping to prepare parts of the dinner and to the students that volunteered the night of.
Possibly one of the most noteworthy parts of the event was the BYOP (Bring Your Own Plate) concept. This originally started as a funny idea, but soon became a reality as it sparked an environmental initiative. This focus of sustainability ensured very little waste was generated.
Apart from the charitable element of the dinner, this encounter has further furnished leadership students with invaluable expertise in organizing and overseeing extensive events while giving back to the community.
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