CENTRAL OKANAGAN PUBLIC SCHOOLS
Thrifty Students Give Back

Student leaders at École Kelowna Secondary School (KSS) donated $1000 to the Central Okanagan Food Bank after selling clothing at a pop-up lunch time thrift store. Thrifty Thursday is a regular event at KSS, and students are all for reducing waste while raising money for good causes.

 "Thrifty Thursday prevents textile waste, raises money for great Canadian charities, and offers students a sustainable and convenient way to get clothes," said Julia Soleski, Grade 12. "We can make a tangible difference because each piece of clothing a student brings home was diverted from needlessly filling a landfill or waterway."

For the first major donation from Thrifty Thursday, the students chose the Central Okanagan Food Bank. The Food Bank will be able to turn the $1000 donation into $3000 worth of food.

"We are deeply inspired by the KSS students' remarkable achievements with their Thrifty Thursday initiative," said RayAnn Gruza, Communications Coordinator at the Central Okanagan Food Bank. "Their generous donation to our organization is a true testament to their community spirit, and we are honored to be chosen as the recipient."

Organizing the weekly pop-up gives students a rewarding opportunity for volunteer experience, and they hope to inspire their classmates to keep it going. The senior leaders recently hosted students from École KLO Middle to share the idea with other schools.

"I have always been really interested in sustainability and clothes, so I really felt that Thrifty Thursdays was a great way to get involved with both," said Olivia Lewis, Grade 10. "I really hope that Thrifty Thursdays can grow into a more prevalent weekly event at KSS with more enthusiastic volunteers."