Letter from Julie McGowan, mum and Mary’s Meals volunteer

Dear Editor,

As a mum of four, I know how vital it is for children to gain a quality education that sets them up for life. It is so desperately sad that not every child in the world is afforded this chance.

Mary’s Meals, the international school feeding charity, is doing amazing work in 18 of the world’s poorest countries to encourage hungry children into the classroom with the promise of a daily school meal – giving them energy to learn and hope for a brighter future.

I first became aware of Mary’s Meals when my eldest, Joseph, was in primary school and his class were doing a school project about the charity. Inspired by its incredible work, I decided to become a volunteer for this wonderful movement that feeds more than 2.4 million children every school day.

As a parent, it is always a challenge to think of an appropriate gift at the end of a school year to show appreciation and thanks to your child’s teacher.

This year, Mary’s Meals are offering a special ‘Present for my Teacher’ digital gift cards. These cards can be bought for £5, £10, or £19.15 – the amount of money it costs to feed a child with Mary’s Meals for a whole school year.

To gift this to a teacher is a thank you for their important work and a gift of hope and food for those children who need it most. To purchase a ‘Present for my Teacher’ gift card, please visit marysmeals.org.uk/shop.

Julie McGowan