COVID, rising interest rates and cost of living pressures are driving increasing demand for sandwiches to fill the hungry tummies of primary school students who head to school with no lunch.
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Since 2017, Ballarat Grammar, Alfredton Rotary and Eatup Australia have partnered to provide vegemite and cheese sandwiches to local schools, who freeze them to give to children who arrive at school without lunch.
Before COVID, students at Ballarat Grammar were making 6000 to 6500 sandwiches a year but now they are churning out about 7500 a year with no sign of falling demand.
"As the economic situation has worsened for many families during and after the COVID pandemic hit us, we have found that more schools have families who are needing our support," said Eatup Ballarat coordinator Deb Robertson.
The program began supplying about seven local schools. That number now is 33 across the region including many schools who at first said there was no need and offered to help, who have now called to be included in the deliveries.
The main thing is that kids have lunch so they can think after lunch and that will help them develop to their full potential. It's better for our community if every kid in our community can be at their best
- Deb Robertson
Student volunteers make sandwiches once a fortnight, which are individually wrapped and packed back in to bread bags in batches of 10. Rotary volunteers then deliver the sandwiches to schools the following day.
On Tuesday, Ballarat Grammar students made the 40,000th sandwich of the Ballarat program.
Even during COVID, when most children were learning at home, the demand was still there and Rotarians made up and delivered the sandwiches.
"Since COVID, even through COVID when most kids were at home ... we thought we would have a break but schools said they still had kids and they are struggling," Ms Robertson said.
At the start of the year, each school receives a "quick delivery" of at least one loaf of sandwiches, then deliveries are made once a fortnight according to need.
"The support of Ballarat Grammar students and staff has been instrumental in our ability to reach this milestone of filling 40,000 hungry tummies. It is amazing what can be achieved when people of passion work together," Ms Robertson said.
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The partnership extends further, with Woolworths supplying the bread, Caine Property and Natures Cargo providing financial support to buy margarine and cheese.
Ms Robertson said students were "quite chuffed" to be part of the program.
"They are pleased to be making a real difference to some little kid somewhere who will take this sandwich," she said.
"The main thing is that kids have lunch so they can think after lunch and that will help them develop to their full potential," she said. "It's better for our community if every kid in our community can be at their best."
Tax-deductible donations can be made at eatup.org.au and write in the message the donation is for Ballarat to ensure money is directed to the local program.
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