Food Recovery in OHS

Food Recovery in OHS:

How Mr. Tynan is Feeding Students and Reducing Waste

By Haylee Vejvoda and Alex Anderson

HAYLEE VEJVODA: In recognition of Earth Day on April 22nd, we have been investigating sustainability in the Oregon School District. As a part of this upcoming series of articles, we’re here today with Mr. Tynan, a teacher who created a food recovery program at OHS.

ALEX ANDERSON: So, Mr. Tynan, what made you want to start this food recovery program?

TIM TYNAN: Good question. Well, it's obvious when you look at the garbage, a lot of food gets thrown away. But one of the very first things that I did here when I came to Oregon five years ago is set up a food pantry with the Oregon with the Oregon area food pantry. So it's like an extension of theirs. Hunger is an issue. It's an issue at every school. It's not you know, it's not addressed in a way in every district the same way. But having access to food is huge. So what really motivated me first to create free, healthy food choices was hunger, not necessarily the environment.

VEJVODA: Can you walk us through, like, exactly what the food recovery program looks like?

TYNAN: Yeah, it's a blue bucket. There is one, there used to be two, but there's just one that sits out in the lunchroom. And students who have, fruit usually, that they don't eat, they put in the bucket. And it and that's the partnership, you know that they don't chuck it. And then there are about five classrooms in the school that have blue bowls, like the one that's in Ms.Greiner's room. And I, after lunch, circulate through the school and put, you know, as much food as I have evenly dispersed in each one and it gets eaten.

ANDERSON: Yeah. So as somebody who's in a classroom with those blue bowls of fruit every day, I have a classmate who walks in every day, picks up either a pear or a clementine and is eating everything like that's where she gets her food.

ANDERSON: How else do you think your program is impacting the students at OHS?

TYNAN: Well, first of all, that's great to hear that it's sort of a regular thing. So for students, besides knowing that there's a space that they can get food that's free in addition to the food recovery bowls. The food pantry does get heavily used as well. So I think a lot of students recognize that there's an option to not just throwing it away and it's taken some time, but I think that's one of the big impacts so that now when they're in an environment where they have, there isn't a space to put unused food.They feel it. They notice that it's become normalized. And the hope is, is that food recovery programs grow beyond schools. But in restaurants and cafeterias around that, there are spaces where people can put unused food.

VEJVODA: So what do you plan on doing with the food recovery program here in the future?

TYNAN: Well, that's a great question. That blue bucket gets about 20 pounds of food a day on average. And I know when we hit our 100th day of school, we sort of had a little dance because that meant we saved over a ton of food that would have gone in the garbage.

ANDERSON: It's crazy.

TYNAN: Yeah, it's a lot of food. Well, we have been hoping that the cafeteria would be open to a compost program, and they are. So now we just need to solidify the location and the specs and sort of the logistics and details. But they have the buckets already, and they are ready to start saving food scraps. We have access to several community gardens and Anderson Farm Park is a close one. The Harlan Farm Sanctuary is a place we'll have a youth farm. So these are spaces that compost can go. But also the middle school here in Oregon has gardens and can benefit from compost. 

ANDERSOBN: And they actively compost.

TYNAN: Right. That's what I heard actually, that the school, their school. So but also the community too, and other schools that have compost gardeners in the community over time can learn to come to the school and utilize the compost that's here because compost is sort of like an essential part of organic gardening and farming.

VEJVODA: Actually, I was wondering, so I'm a part of Student Council. Have you guys kind of been in contact with them? Because I know that they've been trying to get compost too, and I know that they've kind of been rejected multiple years in the past because admin kind of shut that down. I was just wondering if you guys were kind of working with them on that at all?

TYNAN: Not really, no. Yeah, but that's great to hear that they're pushing it.

VEJVODA: Yeah.

ANDERSON: What kind of personal stake do you hold in both the environmental and personal impacts of a program like this?

TYNAN: That's an interesting question. Personal stake? Well, it's. I do know that when I'm not here, it's, it’s sort of really obvious that the bucket it's there isn't somebody who remembers to grab it. It's not there. And I get texts and emails. So it's very near and dear to me for sure. It's my life, to be honest with you. You know, not just the environment, but, you know, justice in general. And so I view environmental work as a form of justice for the environment, for animals, for people, you know, that we deserve healthy choices that are free. So it's and that's a personal conviction. It's a really, really deep one. Thank you for asking.

ANDERSON: And you have you considered working with ECOS on programs like this?

TYNAN: I haven't. I see the announcements every once in a while for that group. And I think it would be really great to partner and talk to them. And, you know, of course, we're we're all busy and unfortunately, we haven't made the the final effort to do that.

ANDERSON: Well, I was just thinking, if Student Council is pushing for composting and the food department is agreeing with composting and you also have an ECOS group that I'm sure would be very open to composting with enough teamwork, I feel like that might be a solution. Yeah, sorry, that's not actually part of the interview. I’m just…

TYNAN: No it's like…

ANDERSON: …sharing information.

TYNAN: That's a really great point because that's how things have staying power, right? When it's collaborative and things become, you know, institutionalized.

ANDERSON: Make it last.

TYNAN: Yeah.

VEJVODA: Is that kind of something you're going to be looking to do in the future then? Is kind of like, expand like your reach with other people as well?

TYNAN: Yeah. Yeah. And I'm really excited, actually, about. So there are opportunities for kids to work on veggie farms, organic veggie farms. And you know, for money and in Chicago, for example, and in Milwaukee, there are places where kids can, who are interested in organic farming, can get a summer job working as a young farmer. So the Heartland Farm Sanctuary, we've secured an acre and a half. There, too, will be putting a lot of compost in that acre and a half this year, and by next year we'll be offering actual employment opportunities for kids interested in organic veggie farming. And they're just in Stoughton. So it's it's.

ANDERSON: That's wonderful.

VEJVODA: That's really cool.

ANDERSON: Thank you. Make sure we get a word out on that. That's great.

TYNAN: Thank you. Yeah.

ANDERSON: And there's another collaboration there with FFA.

TYNAN: Yeah, Yeah. That's a that's sort of an obvious one. And there are, I know students in FFA that are interested in sustainable organic or regenerative.

ANDERSON: So if you look at FFA, Eco Student Council and the empire, you run, that is Panther Radio and Food recovery.

TYNAN: Empire, I run. That's funny.

ANDERSON: Actually. That's one of the things I wanted to ask you about. Yeah. Within the student base, a lot of us don't know. You don't know who you are, don't know who brings the fruit to the classes, don't know. Like I didn't know you until this year. Have you thought about maybe trying to reach out over things like Panther Vision or maybe publicizing things like Panther Radio?

TYNAN: Yeah, that's the Achilles heel for all of us, for sure. And as it's taken time, you know, each year I get to know more students in the in the regular high school. And with my collaboration with Mrs.Greiner, I get to know wonderful students like you. So each area gets more it gets more and more working more closely with Mr.Rogers and Panther vision. So it's great advice, great suggestion. And I appreciate, you know, getting to know you.

ANDERSON: Because I'm sure we'd all love to see, like we in the Journalism class and some of the people at Panther Vision know that these three entities are kind of working together now. But I don't think anybody else knows about that, because I'll mention it to my friends. Oh, I have this article to work on. And they will say we have a newspaper, and they'll say there's a radio station. And maybe that's definitely, as you said, an Achilles heel.

TYNAN: Yeah. Yeah, for sure. And we'll hopefully make some big strides, especially, you know, the rest of this year and next year. Yeah.

ANDERSON: That's wonderful to hear. Well, thank you, Mr. Tynan.

TYNAN: And thanks for doing this.