Having provided thousands of healthy lunches to schools throughout Invercargill, Pita Pit has also donated 50 sports balls to Ascot Community School.
As part of the Ministry of Education’s Ka Ora, Ka Ako Healthy School Lunches programme, Tay St Pita Pit has provided 3300 healthy lunches to schools in the area over the past two terms.
The sporting gear was donated by the Tania Dalton Foundation, which was set up by Pita Pit New Zealand chief executive Duane Dalton, Mrs Dalton’s widower, in 2017.
The foundation has since donated more than half a million dollars worth of sports equipment to schools around the country.
Tay St Pita Pit franchisee owner Alesha Blair said her team had delivered 1300 meals every month to schools in Southland.
"It’s a pretty cool initiative. Doing the lunches is rewarding in itself, but then to back it up with donating this sports gear from the foundation is really quite special.
She said while it was important to help tamariki in eating healthy, encouraging children to get active was just as essential to encourage them to thrive in the classroom.
This was the second year Mrs Blair and the Tania Dalton Foundation had donated sports gear to the school.
Ascot Community School teacher Ella Markey was stoked with the initiative. "It stocks up all our lending shed equipment — the kids are going to get some great use out of it all."
The lunches donated by the foundation and Pita Pit were also of great benefit, she said.
"Healthy bellies fuel healthy minds."
