Haldane Elementary School Raises Funds for Farm to School at Family Spaghetti Dinner

Last Thursday, Haldane Elementary School had their first Annual Family Spaghetti Dinner to raise money for their growing farm to school initiative. "It had been my dream to have a family spaghetti dinner at Haldane ever since I started working here," announced Assistant Principal Julia Sniffen at the dinner last week.

Over the past few months, there had been some discussion about bringing local New York State ground beef from Slope Farm into the school lunch program, but the cost was higher than what food service could include in their budget. So at the September Wellness Committee meeting, Julia Sniffen came up with the idea of combining the spaghetti dinner with a fundraiser for the local beef. Sandy McKelvey, director of Hudson Valley Farm to School loved the idea, and the two of them immediately began planning for the event.



Food Service Director, Lauren Collica soon got on board and began processing and freezing local tomatoes and basil, including those growing in her very own Tomato Sauce Garden the Haldane Garden Committee planted for her over the summer!

"None of us could have guessed this would be so popular! Being our first event, we expected maybe 100 people," stated McKelvey. "But the rsvp's kept on coming, and by the afternoon of the event, we had over 240!"

The Family Spaghetti Dinner was truly a community event. It wouldn't have been possible without all the generous donations and volunteers.

Kory Riesterer, chair of Haldane's Garden Committee created the exquisite dried flower arrangements on the tables.

Slope Farm donated the ground beef for the bolognese sauce.

Glynwood Farm donated the kale and arugula for the salad. 

Fishkill Farms donated the apples for the baked apple dish.

Nature's Pantry donated all the ingredients for the baked apples.

Beacon Bread Company donated the baguettes.
The Haldane PTA donated funds to purchase the pasta.

BOE President, Joe Curto donated four pounds of Parmigiano Reggiano cheese.

Food Service Director, Lauren Collica said, "Last night was such a positive experience in all of my time running a kitchen. The amount of time, effort, and generosity from everyone involved is something that will continue to inspire me to keep fresh, local choices in our cafeteria."

And a big thank you goes out to all the parent, staff, and student volunteers that made this event so fun and memorable.

We can't wait to do it again!

Beacon Bread Company