Saltus students have collected the equivalent of 1,450 meals for The Eliza DoLittle Society’s food bank.

Throughout May, students from S7 to S9 participated in the charities Read to Feed initiative and also hosted a media design competition to promote the programme.

“The efforts, enthusiasm and willingness to help others exhibited by the Saltus students has been extraordinary and I’d like to extend my sincere thanks,” TEDS executive director Jennifer Mahoney stated.

According to the charity, the students collected a significant amount of non-perishable food for their Food Bank in Warwick, with the collection tubs overflowing at the end of the campaign.

As part of the media design competition, S7 students were tasked with designing a logo, posters and a banner encouraging sponsors to donate a non-perishable food item for every book they read in May.

Austin Dowling designed the winning logo, Honor Minors the winning web banner and Mia Barker the best poster, all of which were displayed on the TEDS Facebook page. Winners of the media competition, along with a few of their classmates, got to visit TEDS’s Food Bank and spent the morning preparing fresh vegetables, checking expiration dates, sorting food and helping pack groceries for clients.

Ms Mahoney added: “The hands-on experience gained by the students truly helped them to appreciate how vital these supplies are to some of those in our community and how difficult it can sometimes be to meet the demand that currently exists. They are now able to understand the importance of food drives and how food wastage can be avoided.”

Students earned a grub day for their efforts and those that collected the most food will help out at the food bank at end of June, while others will have that opportunity during the next academic year.

Jon Beard, Saltus’ deputy head and director of advancement, said an integral part of the school’s mission is to provide “service to others”.

“This is perhaps the mission of the Bermuda community,” he added. “We encourage our students to help those less fortunate than themselves, and are constantly impressed by the manner in which they respond.”