Since September, members of a group of volunteers known as the Lunch Crew have taken a small bit of their time to help out during the lunch periods at Petal Primary School, giving a small break to the teachers who regularly staff those times.
Good news for community members who would like to help with the initiative: the Lunch Crew is open to anyone willing to volunteer a little more than an hour of their time to monitor the students the last Wednesday of every month throughout the school year.
“Really, we’re just looking for ways to keep (the teachers’) morale up,” primary school principal Tessa Trimm said. “They work so hard – you don’t get to be No. 1 without working hard, and we just want to find little successes.
“They love eating in the cafeteria with their kids; they love that time, and it’s a great opportunity to talk with the kids away from academia. But they also love talking with other adults, and so it’s just a huge morale boost.”
The Lunch Crew, which is overseen by the Petal Primary School PTO, features about 10 volunteers every hour who are tasked with watching the children and helping with small chores. Individuals can register for the opportunity by clicking on the www.signupgenius.com link that is provided on the Petal Primary School PTO Facebook page.
“So the PTO gives (volunteers) these aprons, and they’re just in there interacting with kids, mingling with them, supervising, helping open ketchup packets, and just getting to know our kiddos,” Trimm said. “So our kids are looking forward to it because a lot of their parents come – we’ve got some grandparents, we’ve got a lot of dads, community members, and really anybody who wants the opportunity to come.”
While the Lunch Crew handles its duties in the cafeteria, teachers have the opportunity to enjoy a duty-free lunch for the day.
“Teachers don’t usually get to leave and go eat lunch somewhere during the day, but we’re able to cater in things for them,” Trimm said. “They get to talk with grownups for a few minutes, and the PTO provides some type of snack for the teachers in our conference room.
“This past month, they did dessert and celebrated being the Number One district (in the state).”
So far, the Lunch Crew has been popular with the community, with every session boasting a full roster of volunteers.
“We need 10 volunteers every time to make it happen, and we’ve had 10 volunteers every time,” Trimm said. “So it’s been great, and the signup on the PTO (Facebook) page is super easy. Our teachers love it.”
