“Be joyful. Be humble. Be loving. Be forgiving.”
This is the motto and the four pillars of St. Francis of Assisi middle school. Over the past school year, you would find their grade nine leadership class volunteering at The Mustard Seed four times a month.
Miranda Tonery, teacher at St. Francis of Assisi, knew she wanted to give her class a humbling experience that embodied the four pillars of their school but also encouraged Christ-centred stewardship in the local community. Miranda knew The Mustard Seed would be the perfect fit for her students to continue to evolve their leadership skills while giving back to those in need.
“Some of our students have never seen someone experiencing homelessness. This opportunity creates a vital learning experience of how to be humble and allows the students to give back to our community,” she told us.
Miranda and her students made their way across town on the school bus and dedicated their leadership class, and part of their lunch hour, to volunteering at The Mustard Seed. The students would help with sorting and organizing donations as well as clean-up duties. Miranda says she is “thankful that my students are able to volunteer at a Christian-based organization that helps to support the local community, including our very own school.”
St. Francis of Assisi is a part of The Mustard Seed’s School Lunch Program. Its purpose is to help children and families struggling with poverty and hunger in Red Deer, which has been hard hit by the economic recession. Last year, The Mustard Seed delivered 55,958 school lunches to those children in need, including students at St. Francis of Assisi. This reason and many others are why Miranda chose to dedicate their time at The Mustard Seed over the past school year.
From all of us at The Mustard Seed, thank you to this incredible grade nine class for all their support and dedicated efforts. We are deeply grateful that you choose to be a part of The Mustard Seed family.
