As parents of children moving through Summit School District, it is always hard watching individuals who have made positive, life-lasting impacts in our schools leave their positions.

With a mix of heartfelt thanks and well wishes, we say goodbye to Joel Hauswirth, director of food services. The Silverthorne Elementary Wellness Team was formed to help expose children to healthy eating and active living through various in-school contests, “Fresh Fridays” and to help bring about a healthier yet engaging design in the structure of various school celebrations and events. Because of Joel’s passion to deliver the tastiest, healthiest foods he could to our kids (no easy task with FDA regulations and budgetary constraints to juggle), he was instrumental in our success.

This week, the SVE Wellness Team will deliver a fresh fruit and vegetable tray to every classroom to celebrate Valentine’s Day, a tradition Joel helped us put into place, and one the teachers and students love: Each child in those classrooms will have the opportunity and encouragement to ‘be a risk taker’ and try a new food! Joel even enhanced a “Kids Night Out” by bringing a smoothie-bike to the event. Kids pedaled like crazy to make a fresh fruit smoothie “blend” … and then got to drink the reward!

We wish we could count the number of kids who now can’t wait to eat snap peas or enjoy kiwi (with the skin on!), and we loved watching those numbers grow over the years. Kids who had never tasted various vegetables and fruits now pick them out at the grocery store to eat at home.

Thank you, Joel, for your creative passion for healthy eating, and the positive impact you have had on so many of our Summit County kids!

Renee Rogers and Catherine Kirkwood Smith

Silverthorne Elementary Wellness Team