Packages of Ramen soup, apple sauce, canned beans and other non-perishable items lay scattered in piles at The Exchange at The Collection at Forsyth as Riverwatch Middle School students functioned as a human conveyer belt around the food. The 90 or so middle schoolers each carried a burlap bag, placing one or two of each dry good into their sack, packaging meals for the nonprofit Meals by Grace to distribute to struggling Forsyth County residents during a critical time when students are not provided meals during school. “Meals by Grace always struggles to have [enough food] around spring break, so students are helping package meals for them,” said Juli Ratinaud, co-president of Riverwatch’s PTSA. “A lot of families are in the giving mindset during the holidays, but you don’t realize how critical [it is] during spring break and the summer months.”
Riverwatch student body takes day off to pay it forward