Becki Zerr:
I'm Becki Zerr, and welcome to Raising Kindness, a podcast all about promoting volunteerism within our community. Join me each month as I'm joined by my 12-year-old son, Bennett and his friends demonstrating that together, despite my vision loss, we can definitely make a positive difference in others' lives. We may not always know what we're doing precisely, but we're going to learn. Meet new people and have a lot of fun during the process. So, grab a friend and join us on our volunteering adventure that we call Raising Kindness.
Welcome to another episode of Raising Kindness. Eating fresh, warm, ooey-gooey cookies as a child is a memory that many of us would have. But where those cookies particularly came from, and who made them could vary significantly. Some kids bring them in their lunch from home, some would trade a lunch item for them, and other cookies just seem to magically arrive. The important thing and what matters though is that that child sitting at school trying to learn is not distracted by an empty stomach.
Today, I'm excited to welcome the Regina Food for Learning program. The kids and I had an opportunity to help out at this valuable community organization that provides snacks at school that would otherwise go without. As a child, myself, I really had no concept that people went without food or with maybe not enough food. I never really considered that some of those people were young kids just like myself.
The first time that this concept actually passed in my mind was when I was about eight years old. I remember my grandpa saying to me as I picked away at my supper one evening, "Eat up your supper, Becki. There are starving kids in this world." But, what I didn't realize was that some of those kids might have been sitting right next to me at school. I thought that he was referring to other kids living in a totally different part of the world than myself. The world at that age really felt so big and just so far away. Over the years, I've tried to teach my son to appreciate everything that he has. I've tried to teach him at an appropriate level that everybody unfortunately is not dealt the same cards.
In preschool, he was taught the rudimentary principle of equality. And when it was his day to bring a snack for the class, Bennett not only brought a snack for himself, but he brought the same for everyone. Sitting around his table, everybody got the same. Nobody got a bigger piece, nobody got an extra piece, and most definitely nobody was left out, but rather everything was distributed equally. It was so ideal. But as he's growing up, and he started to get glimpses into the real world, I can see him questioning apparent equities, and it totally breaks my heart to have him learn the truth of the world. But, it also makes me proud to see him questioning things and wondering why.
He's a kid who's taken his mittens off and had given them to appear on a particularly cool day who didn't have mitts. After school, he told me the same story and he continued by saying, "Mom, I just put my hands in my pockets. My jacket pockets are really warm."
Anyways, let's move on to today's episode. We had a really positive time spending the day with the Regina Food for Learning program, and I'm so excited to welcome Lin Gennutt, the executive director of the program. Welcome to the show, Lin.

Lin Gennutt:
Hi. Thanks for having me. I'm very excited as well.

Becki Zerr:
Lin, I'm wondering if you'd mind starting off by telling us just a bit about yourself.

Lin Gennutt:
Oh, about myself? Well, I'm the executive director of Regina Food for Learning. I have been since October of last year, and I was the GM a few years ago, so I've had a little bit of experience with the organization. Now, I also worked for Regina Public Schools in special programming for 22 years, and the programs that I worked in, we were recipients of the food for Regina Food for Learning. So, I've had a very, very long association with Regina Food for Learning. So, that's about me. I just retired from the school board in December, so I took over full-time with Regina Food for Learning and it's been very, very busy and it's been an exciting time and we're trying to feed lots of hungry kids.

Becki Zerr:
I can imagine just how busy you guys actually are, but I'm wondering if you can share with the viewers, just a little bit about the Regina Food for Learning program and how it came to be.

Lin Gennutt:
Sure. It started way back in 1988 by a group of concerned citizens that realized that there was a problem of child hunger. So, they started Regina Food for Learning and I believe it was in a church basement kind of thing. I wasn't around then, so I don't know. Some of the founders are still around, and we have had luncheons with them and stuff, but so it was started in that way. So, it's been in operation for 33 years, and I have to say, I'm really sad to say that it's grown quite a bit in that time. We keep hoping to work ourselves out of jobs, but the need just grows.

Becki Zerr:
Absolutely. Can you tell us a little bit about the programming that you guys provide?

Lin Gennutt:
So, we provide snacks, lunches, and breakfasts for children.
Right now, we've got about 940 children that we are feeding every week. So, it depends on what the schools need.
So, there's different types of programs. There's universal programs. There's a couple of schools where every child in the school gets a snack every day, so that would be a universal program. We have somewhere... it's maybe a special classroom that's 10 or 15 kids that are arriving at school without breakfast or lunch, or it might be just a group of kids that are in a school and the teachers. It's usually the teachers or the lunchroom supervisors who notice that these kids are habitually coming to school hungry, and so, they'll approach the admin about these hungry children and then they come to us and say, "Are you able to supply breakfast and lunch for these kids?" Or "We need some snacks for these kids." Or whatever the need is, they approach us about that and then we decide as an organization if we have the funding and the space and the manpower to accommodate them and we try to accommodate all of the requests that we get.
Unfortunately, we've maxed out on our space right now, so it's really difficult for us to take on anything new, but we're trying our best. We hate to say no.

Becki Zerr:
Well, your setup there is just... It was phenomenal to be part of it this morning. Thanks for sharing some insight on the enrolment process I was definitely going to ask you that, but can you share some information on your funding? How reliant are you guys on public donations?

Lin Gennutt:
Very. We don't get Gunner government funding per se. We do get some funding from REACH, which is the Regina Education Action on Child Hunger, and they get some big government grants and they were under their umbrella and we do get a bit of money from them. So, indirectly, we get a bit of government funding, but not directly, which is only not even a quarter of our budget. The rest of it is private donations and corporate grants. So, I do an awful lot of grant writing and begging to companies and trying to get the word out there that here we are, and food costs are going up and we need money.

Becki Zerr:
Absolutely, and that was a great point is yes, food costs are definitely going up everywhere, so people's dollars aren't getting stretched as far. Have you guys noticed a decrease in donations thus far?

Lin Gennutt:
We have. I'd say the donations are down a little bit this year. We've had a couple of good corporate grants come through for us, which is really good, but private donations is definitely down, and the economy's bad, and people don't have as much money to expendable income. So, we understand that 100% the donations are down, but costs are definitely up. Definitely.

Becki Zerr:
Absolutely. So, if somebody like myself who's just out doing their everyday shopping once a week, once a month, however people go and they happen to see an item or two that might be on sale, what type of items are you guys particularly looking for that people could easily pick up and toss into their cart and drop off at your organization?

Lin Gennutt:
Well, things for baking, like flour and oats, coconut, raisins, craisins, stuff like that. No nuts, absolutely nothing with nuts on. Even granola bars because we would make sure that they get out, but please make sure they're nut-free. Cereals, because we do trail mix as well, and not honey not Cheerios, which is super popular, but unfortunately there's nuts in them, so we can't have them.
We also will take some fresh produce carrots and things that we can grind up, apples that we can shred them and put them into muffins or cookies, or I think our volunteer Anne will be able to really speak to that because she's the one that actually makes that stuff.

Becki Zerr:
For sure. So, I had a blast standing beside you filling the muffin tins this morning, and I'm just wondering what your thoughts are on our type of group that approached you for volunteering. So, consisting of kids and a person with vision challenges, what are your thoughts on people coming out like that to pitch in and help out for your organization?

Lin Gennutt:
Well, I mean, we do appreciate all the help that we can get, absolutely. And we are trying to be as inclusive as we possibly can, and as we had discussed this morning, my dad was visually impaired, so I feel passionately about people that they're not disabled, they are abled and people that have a disability can definitely still help out in the community in a lot of different ways. So, yeah, I'm pretty proud that we were able to do that this morning, and I had a lot of fun too. It was a really good time.

Becki Zerr:
We totally pulled it off together. It was the greatest. You were very easy from my vision loss perspective. A very easy person to work with and we had lots of giggles. So, if somebody wanted to gain some more information on the Regina Food for Learning program, where would you best direct them to achieve that information?

Lin Gennutt:
Well, you can go to our website, which is reginafoodforlearning.com. You can call me and I'd be happy to. I love getting on my soapbox and talking about hungry kids and you can call me at 306-565-8632, and we also have Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. So, yeah, we should be pretty easy to find. And yeah, I'd be more than happy to talk to anybody about our organization and the great things that we do and the fantastic volunteers that we have, and that we have a small army that comes in and helps us out and without them we couldn't possibly do that. So, could I mention how many snacks and lunches and breakfast we provided in the school year last year?

Becki Zerr:
Yes, please do.

Lin Gennutt:
So, last year for the 2021 school year, we provided 94,360 snacks, 26,617 lunches and 8,389 breakfast.

Becki Zerr:
Amazing. I just need a moment to actually even process those numbers and what that all means. The kids, and I, I think their count, and I'm sure they will share it this afternoon too is, I think we made 171 muffins. Which is just for the quick math, it's just over 14 dozen muffins. And I mean, it was an incredible experience, but to achieve all those numbers, that's a lot of time, a lot of ingredients, and a lot of coordination that goes into that. So, thank you so much for all of the work that you guys do for filling the tummies of all the amazing kids that are sitting around our school desks every day. And thank you so much for taking time out of your busy day to come and have a conversation with me. It's been such a pleasure.

Lin Gennutt:
Oh, no problem, Yeah, and thank you for helping us out and getting the word out there. Those hungry kids need the food, and you really can't learn on an empty stomach. So, thank you for all that you've done for us. Thank you so much.

Becki Zerr:
Absolutely, my pleasure too.
Next up is Anne Millar. She is a long-running volunteer for the Regina Food for Learning program. Welcome to the show, Anne.

Anne Millar:
Thank you for having me today.

Becki Zerr:
I'm just wondering if you can start off by telling us a little bit about yourself.

Anne Millar:
Well, I am a retired schoolteacher. I retired five years ago. I was a pre-K teacher and a kindergarten teacher with Regina Public Schools. So, I started my career over 40 years ago, and I guess, I just really enjoyed working with kids. Still do a little bit too.

Becki Zerr:
That's amazing. I have such respect for teachers. I feel like I should be calling you Mrs. Miller though, now.

Anne Millar:
I get that.

Becki Zerr:
I'm just wondering if you can share a little bit about how you got started with the Regina Food for Learning program.

Anne Millar:
Well, when I retired five years ago, I got to September and I thought, "Oh, my goodness, what am I going to do with all my time?" I never realized that my teaching profession took up so much of my day and weekends. So, I also belong to a group called, 100 Women Who Care, and I was at their meeting in September, I believe, and what happens with that group is that everybody gives $100. We meet four times a year and a worthy charity is given at $10,000 or more at every meeting. So, that meeting that I went to, Regina Food for Learning got the money, and I was very interested. I'd never heard of them. And so, whoever it was representing, the group came and talked to us about what they were doing, and I thought, and they said we need volunteers. So, I phoned up the next day and I got on the list.

Becki Zerr:
I love it. I love the sound of the other organization too. Thank you so much for sharing that with us. That's amazing.
What type of volunteer opportunities have you had so far with the Regina Food for Learning program?

Anne Millar:
Well, I have made the trail mix bags quite a bit, and I have made cookies. I go on Mondays, Monday mornings. It's a great way to start my week, and we made cookies. I've also been there when they've made muffins. I've just been there when there's been a lot of chopping to do too.

Becki Zerr:
I saw some of the produce that came in, and I cannot even imagine how long some of that chopping would take for you, you ladies and volunteers out there. That's amazing. And now, I'm going to say I have heard what this number is, but I'm just wondering if you can share with the audience about how many cookies do you make on those Monday mornings?

Anne Millar:
Well, last Monday we made, I think 525 cookies. And sometimes, when we're making the trail mix we have made well over 400 just in the morning.

Becki Zerr:
That is amazing. Seriously, that's in one morning. What's your favourite type of baking to do for the Regina Food for Learning program?

Anne Millar:
Oh, well, we make this one cookie called Farmer's Cookies, which is a really great cookie. It's got wheatgerm in it and all kinds of healthy additives for a whole wheat flour. It's a great cookie. And the interesting thing is it all smells so good, but none of us even taste a cookie during that time, which is really hard not to do.

Becki Zerr:
I can imagine. I'm glad you brought up the scent that is associated with that room because as we were walking down the hall getting closer, before we even baked anything, you can smell the residual scent, but by the time we were done, it was just amazing. The kids kept on saying, "Oh, my goodness, it smells so amazing here." So, kudos to you for refraining from sampling some of your delicious treats, but it's such a rewarding feeling to know that they're going to go into some well-deserving tummies. I'm just wondering, what your thoughts are on being a former teacher? What are your thoughts on having youth becoming part of the volunteer force?

Anne Millar:
When I first started with Food for Learning, we did have some youth come in and help us make the trail mix, and that seemed to work out quite well. They were coming from the... I think the sheltered workshop. I'm not exactly sure, but they would come in on the Mondays and help us make trail mix. But, once the pandemic started, we had to cut out all of that of course, so I [inaudible 00:16:29] great. I think there's lots of things that lots of people can help us with at the Food for Learning.

Becki Zerr:
For sure. And if somebody is watching or listening to this episode and they're considering getting involved, do you have a piece of advice that you'd offer to them?

Anne Millar:
Be flexible. I think just enjoy what you're doing, and we've made some nice friendships with the group of us that work together on Mondays, and I think just know that everything we were doing is going towards hungry children, and as being a pre-K teacher myself, I know that there were lots of children that came to my class without a good breakfast or a good lunch that day. So, this program really does feel a need there.

Becki Zerr:
Absolutely. Thank you so much, Anne, for all of your amazing contributions to the community, and thank you for taking some time to spend with us today as well. It's so appreciated.

Anne Millar:
You are very welcome.

Becki Zerr:
Well, we made it to the part of the show where the kids are about to totally take over.
Today, joining me is my son, Bennett and his friend, Danika.
So, I'm wondering if we can start today with you guys sharing with the audience a bit about what volunteer opportunity we had today, and generally how the day went. Danika, do you maybe want to start off and then Bennett, you can jump in at any point buddy and help her out.

Danica:
So, we started off by driving to the facility. And Lynn, the lady that was helping us, she met us there, and she opened the front door and just helped us and welcomed us in. And then she showed us the place where they pack everything for the schools.

Bennett:
She showed us around the building, and she showed us where they had all the coolers or the freezers and all of the foods and stuff that they had. And then they showed us around the kitchen where we would later make the muffins.

Becki Zerr:
I'm wondering what did you guys think about today's volunteer experience?

Bennett:
I thought that this volunteer experience was so much fun. It was had to be my favourite. It was just so much fun looking around, seeing what they'd done. It was incredible to see how many muffins and cookies and everything that they had. They had little bags of chips and stuff for the kids, and it was just fun when we were baking. Lynn, and the other lady would share stories of what they did.

Danica:
Yeah, I definitely agree because she said when we got there that these other ladies had helped volunteer that they made 500 cookies a couple mornings ago, and it's just so cool to see how much love and work they put into making all this stuff for all these kids.

Becki Zerr:
Have you guys ever considered that there might be fellow students in your class that are hungry because they have limited food at home?

Bennett:
I haven't thought about that. Honestly, it didn't cross my mind until we were there, and we were almost on our way out and I was like, "Holy, some of these kids in my class or my school might have this, and they would somewhat depend on it to have a good day and survive."

Danica:
Yeah. And I guess, like what you said now that I think about it, that they actually... then you actually think about it and think to say, "Oh, do these kids in our class or school-wide, do they have food to survive on a daily basis?"

Becki Zerr:
Was there something that each of you learned today from volunteering?

Bennett:
So, something that I learned today, and I'm putting it in our baking tips with mom and I, it is that you have to put the dry ingredients in one separate bowl and then the wet ingredients in a separate other bowl or else it will make the flour really, really wet and then it would not make the muffins right.

Danica:
And then what I learned is you don't mix the berries that much or you'll make smurf muffins.

Bennett:
Yes, we almost learned that the hard way.

Becki Zerr:
And I'm wondering what was your favourite part or parts of the day if you can't narrow down the list?

Danica:
I really love to see how much work and care they put into making all these baskets and stuff for all these kids who don't have food, and that they just love their job and what they're doing.

Bennett:
Yeah. It was super fun helping them out and just seeing how they're doing that, they're helping kids like us survive and who don't have a meal at school sometimes. It's just really cool.

Danica:
Something fun was that Ben was very messy and that I had to clean up for him.

Bennett:
I wasn't even that messy.

Becki Zerr:
Well, I think we were all able to learn something today, and we had a lot of fun at the same time. To me, it's obviously never a bad thing when you have a chance to get in the kitchen and make some muffins.
Okay, it's time for the kids Raising Kindness challenge. Remember, this is an opportunity for you, our viewers, to get involved and help us spread some positivity all around our communities. All you need to do is complete the kindness challenge, take a picture or two along the way, and post it with a description on our social media accounts. Okay, you guys, what do you guys have planned for this episode?

Bennett:
So, I think our challenge for today is going to be, go into your kitchen and bake some delicious treats and spread them around the community. You can share them, you can give it to people that you know like neighbours, like kids on your block, even like family, friends, you can do seniors that live anywhere. You can do that.

Danica:
You can also donate, or you can give to people, somebody that has little kids that might need something or to pregnant people or to people that live on the street and that you know and that are very [inaudible 00:22:46].

Becki Zerr:
Oh, what a good idea. I love that you guys are getting everybody into the kitchen to make some delicious treats to share. Good job you guys.
My takeaway. Today, for me, it was nothing but a fantastic day. I absolutely love being in the kitchen, baking with my son, and you know, I've honestly baked with Bennett and his friends quite a few times over the years and it's resulted in a lot of giggles, a lot of messes and some delicious treats.
One time, I actually convinced Bennett and his friend Colby to do part of my Christmas baking. It was totally hilarious, and I turned it into like a talking show cooking competition, and it ended up being so ridiculously fun.
I think baking is one of those life skills that is just so valuable, but it seems to be getting a little bit lost these days. So, I'm really excited about the kids' challenge, and I really hope that you guys all participate and get just reminded about how fun it is to bake. Not to mention all of the delicious treats that are left after. For those of you with vision loss and are listening to this episode, you're probably wondering about the ease of this experience for me today. I will be totally honest. I was a bit curious about how this was all going to play out as well. In my kitchen at home, everything is set up so precisely. All of my baking supplies have a designated spot. So, I can literally open my cupboard, reach my arm in, and pull something out, I know specifically what it is without even having a look at it. Simply because of its location. I use measuring cups that are colour-coordinated and that colour, to me, it indicates a specific amount.
I use specific baking sheets, cookie, and muffin scoops, and I pretty much rely on feel to decide if what I'm baking is actually ready to come out of the oven or not. I know that I obviously was not going to be able to load on my entire kitchen and bring it with me to the community center, so I was a bit nervous because I was going to have to explore what they had on hand and to some extent, I was going to have to be prepared to adapt. But really that's where Bennett and Danika came in totally handy. They helped me figure out what was what, and in turn, it really helped reduce a lot of my stress. And to me, baking has always been my stress reliever, and I reminded myself that the muffins that were making were very much going to be enjoyed by kiddos during their upcoming school day. And that really kept a smile on my face all day long.
And that's the end of this episode of Raising Kindness. We look forward to you guys participating in the kindness challenge, so be sure to tag us in on our social media accounts. Take care. Thank you so much for watching, and happy baking.
And that's a wrap on this episode of Raising Kindness with me, Becki Zerr. Thanks so much to all of my guests and to you for tuning in. Be sure to check us out on social media. You'll find us on Facebook and Instagram at raising.kindness.podcast. And don't forget you're going to want to like and subscribe to the podcast on YouTube and your favourite podcast platform. See you again soon.