The longest lunch that ever was took place at Stoke’s Birchwood School to celebrate the Garden to Table programme’s 15th birthday.
One hundred students and teachers from the senior school community joined together to share kai and try something new, after growing, harvesting and preparing the meal themselves. They were one of many schools around the country that joined in for the ‘Longest Lunch’ celebration late last month. Garden to Table regional coordinator Nelson Marlborough, Prashanti Lovegrove, says Birchwood was the model school for the region, taking the programme on-board and allowing other schools to visit and see how it all works.
“It’s really exciting that they were interested and willing to, not only join Garden to Table, but become an exemplar to our community,” Prashanti says. “It’s enabled the community to become a part of the school through the programme.
Birchwood teacher Shelley Roberts says they joined the programme because it was part of Enviroschools.
“Kaitiaki Karen was already making heaps of vegetables and trying to get kids involved, and different teachers were already trying to cook things, so this provided the framework for it all.”
Enviroschools is an environmental action-based programme where young people are empowered to design and lead sustainability projects in their school and community.
Birchwood was, on the same day, awarded Green Gold status – the highest available, through the Enviroschools programme.
Shelley says the Garden to Table has done so much good for the school and the tamariki
“Not just the kids and what they’ve eaten, conversations they’ve had, and the table manners they’ve learned, but bringing whānau in, it’s really helped with engaging the community.”
