Waterloo region nutrition program finds way to feed kids during pandemic

The day starts early for a team of drivers and volunteers delivering hundreds of brown paper bags full of snacks.

Nutrition for Learning normally provides food for 140 schools in Waterloo region. Now, in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic,it's delivering packages to nourish kids while they're out of the classroom.

The "pop-up" deliveriesare happening outside of local schools while they'reshut down.

Ontario Premier Doug Fordhas said public schools are currently scheduled re-open to teachers on May 1 at the earliestand to students on May 4.

Tania Moser, who provides program support for Nutrition for Learning, says donations from the community and theprogram's general funds have kept it running during the pandemic.

The program started delivering food during March break and since then "it's basically blown up," Moser said. The team CBC Kitchener-Waterloo interviewed delivered 180 food packages in one dayand that's just one of the organization's three routes.

Addison Wise was the first person who walked over to the delivery truck when it stopped at A.R. Kaufman Public School.

Although Nutrition for Learning mostly operates on monetary donations, the team gladly accepted the snack box she proudly handed over.

Romeo Roblero owns his own company, but is off work during the shutdown in Ontario. He says it's much easier to feed his eight kids when he's working.

"If I don't have a place [like this], I don't know what can I do."

Brenda, Grace and Benjamin Prins live down the street from King Edward Public School, one of the locations where the team dropped off food packages earlier this week. They said they made the walk over a nice morning outing.

Mosersays even if it's just one loaf of bread, food "can bring the whole family together."

"I think now more than ever ... being able to share a cheese string or yogurt tube with your child and kind of talk about what's going on, I think it gives a great sense of community and togetherness and normalcy," Moser said.