Cash is food for thought

By Monique Ebrington
MILLWARRA Primary School has been presented with a grant to help encourage healthy eating through edible education.
The Millgrove campus was presented with a cheque for $7500 recently from the Upper Yarra Community Bank.
The money will go towards building a garden shed, hot house and all of the mulch, straw and equipment needed for students to grow their own vegetables.
Dorothy Edgelow has worked in the kitchen at the Gawler Foundation Centre for more than 20 years and has written two cookbooks.
She played an integral part in convening the edible garden project and helped secure funding for Millwarra Primary School.
She said the students will learn how to grow, tend, pick and cook with their own vegetables and herbs from the 10 garden beds that will be established at the school.
“One of the things I had been trying for, over the last 12 months, was to get a garden set up in Millgrove,” Ms Edgelow said.
“The children there were just so overwhelmingly interested in food.
“We have designed an area at the back of the school that we can actually use as a functional, food producing garden.
“We will build garden beds and the students will learn about propagating, growing and harvesting … as well as learning what to do with what they grow and then cooking and eating it.”
Millwarra Primary School principal Rod Barnard said the edible garden project encouraged healthy living and helped the students develop positive life skills.
“The garden will be part of our Go For Your Life program and we’ve had Dorothy Edgelow from the Gawler Foundation and has been doing cooking classes with kids and parents,” Mr Barnard said.
“She is very much into healthy eating with the kids.
“We’re very excited. The kids, especially, are looking forward to the project and being involved in the hands-on aspect.
“Quite a number of the parents are also looking forward to being involved and helping out with the project.”
Millwarra Primary School’s edible garden project will commence in term one next year when students plant their winter vegetable garden.