ICS ~ STRATHCONA HIGH ~ EARTH GROUP
FEEDING EDMONTON 2018
Posted On March 7, 2018
As you reach the top of the stairs in the rarely seen office area of the Little Italy (downtown) Italian Centre Shop location you are met with framed and preserved give-away item from many years ago. Said to be one of the first giveaways from the Italian Shop – at least the first official one – it is an apron. Mostly white, with grey polka dots and red polka dotted accents it reads “Mangio oggi e pago domani”, translating roughly to “eat now, pay tomorrow”. Or more aptly in the case of Frank Spinelli’s approach, “eat now – pay when you can”. Frank, recognizing the greater value in feeding those in need than the bill attached to it, built the Italian Centre on this principle. This is the foundation of the Italian Centre Shop we all know and love today.
It is no wonder then that the Strathcona High School students involved in the Strathcona Initiative caught the eye of the Italian Centre Shop. This group of young people – far too innovative to be tagged with the label “kids” – are global-level rock stars! Since 2008, the entire student body of Strathcona High School has united annually to turn their school motto “as one who serves” into real change. By engaging in multiple local service projects and massive global initiatives and partnering with world-renowned agencies for change, these students have not only learned about servant leadership, entrepreneurship, global citizenship, and social affairs – they have also managed to make a real difference in both their local community and around the world. Students in the school's Leadership Program work behind the scenes to plan and organize each initiative, then mass participation of all school departments, clubs, teams, and community allies come together to make their campaigns a success!
While previous campaigns have seen the building of wells and sanitation projects in four Ethiopian communities, the purchase of bicycles for countless people in Africa and Asia and even the hands-on involvement in the development of economies in developing counties through mirco-loan foundations, this year’s campaign, “Break the Cycle” has students focused closer to home; honing in on the needs of their immediate community members. This year’s initiative will dedicate its efforts to the City of Edmonton. The campaign will focus on providing 100,000 meals to people in need in Edmonton via the Edmonton Food Bank. Students will host a 24-Hour Bikeathon to raise funds. This 2-day event will be held March 16th and 17th. This is the largest school fundraiser of its kind in Canada, organized and managed entirely by students.
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This is where the partnerships come into play. Earth Group is a grassroots organization created by two Edmontonians, Kori Chilibeck and Matt Moreau. Earth Group exists entirely to feed and educate children globally through The Earth Group’s partnership with the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP). The Break the Cycle campaign will raise funds to provide not only 1 million school meals for children globally (one school meal through WFP averages USD $0.25), but will also provide 100,000 meals to people in Edmonton. As you can imagine, meal costs in Edmonton average higher than the USD $0.25 for a school meal through WFP – this is where Frank Spinelli’s legacy and Teresa Spinelli’s savvy business skills will combine and develop Frank’s moto one step further to translate closer to “Eat now… we got this”. |
Because of years of dedicated business association with the superb food manufacturers Emma Products, Mastro & San Daniele, and Ital Pasta, the Italian Centre Shop is going to be able to stretch the students’ fund-raising dollars almost as far as they will go through WFP right here in Canada - resulting in more meals for more families over a longer period of time.
‘We are thrilled with the opportunity to partner with the Italian Centre Shops, a long-standing pillar of the business community in Edmonton. Italian Centre Shop is deeply committed to supporting the community, a philosophy that has been at the heart of the business since its founding in the 1960s. This partnership will directly impact the lives of children around the world and families right here in Edmonton, providing food, water and education to those in need” ~Matt Moreau, Founder, The Earth Group~
While Frank Spinelli and subsequently Teresa Spinelli have certainly taught Edmonton about the best foods and coffees Italy has to offer they have also taught so much more to so many - giving, generosity, faith in a hand shake and the value of helping others. If these students, and Earth Group and ICS have inspired you to want to get involved here is how you can do it:
Help Us Spread the Word
You can share this story on your social media through the links provided on this page. Please use the hashtag #ICSfeedsyeg when sharing/ posting.
Donate Directly to the Bikeathon
You can financially support the students’ fund raising via donation at asonewhoserves.ca.
Donate In-Store
You can drop off food donations to the in-store bins provided at any of the Edmonton Italian Centre Shops.
As a Thank You to their customers, ICS will be giving away Gift Cards that can be used in-store at all their locations both in the shops and the cafes. To be included in the draw please tag and share a photo of you and your donation on social media noting the hahstag #ICSfeedsyeg. More details are available in-store.
The Italian Centre Shop believes in families – big and loud ones. Thrilled to not only to be helping support people in need in the community, but also that the ICS family continues to grow through partnerships with The Earth Group, the incredible students and families of Strathcona High School, and you, their customers.
ICS looks forward to reporting back on all the successes of this campaign in the future, but in the meantime – let those rock star students from Strathcona High School inspire you to click the link or head to one of the shops to donate. Let’s all work together to FEED YEG 2018!
“Your greatness is not what you have, but what you have to give.”
