From left, Margate students Gabby and Collin Doyle, Vincent Piraino and Maggie Eidt with teacher Jessica Cuevas.
MARGATE – They table weekly at the Margate Community Farmers Market to share the bounty of two school gardens and help feed the hungry by donating the proceeds of all sales to the Community FoodBank of New Jersey Southern Branch.
On Thursday, Aug. 2, students Gabby and Colin Doyle, Vincent Piraino and Maggie Eidt were nearly sold out of produce halfway through the morning market, which is held in the parking lot at Steve & Cookies By The Bay, Amherst and Monroe avenues.
“Today we have peppers, eggplant, cherry tomatoes and a variety of herbs,” Maggie Eidt said.
Next to the produce, which the students plant, grow and harvest at gardens at the William H. Ross Elementary School and Eugene A. Tight Middle School, was a basket filled with the proceeds of sales and donations.
According to club advisor and teacher Jessica Cuevas, the students earn about $100 a week at the market. Last year, they raised $1,200 for the FoodBank, but instead of turning over the cash, the student went shopping for food and brought their donations to the FoodBank in Egg Harbor Township.
Cuevas said it’s a way for students to learn the cost of things and learn to appreciate what money can buy.
“We have a Shop and Drop day in October to coincide with Make a Differnce Day,” Cuevas said. “We’re not just teaching the students about growing their own vegetables and eating healthy, we’re trying to create charitable citizens who are likely to give to others all the time.”
