Courtenay El has historically fed kids with Community Link funding that went to help pay an EA for a few hours to put together simple breakfasts and lunches. Up to 30 kids/day were fed. When Shelly Waterfield took over and started to cook for the kids, she showed the possibilities of what lunch could be with the right people and equipment. Courtenay Elementary Community School Society (CECSS) began to work with her and write grants to buy better equipment and better food.

The Province of BC announced funding of $60 million through the Student and Family Affordability Fund in 2022, which they later followed up with $214 million through Feeding Futures funding in 2023. This has allowed us to offer a hot lunch five days a week to any child who wants one.

The hot lunch progam offers nutritious lunches at low or no cost, with a view toward establishing a universal lunch program, to any and all students and staff who want or are in need of a lunch.

The program is designed to be revenue neutral. It is not a fundraiser. It is a service because all kids learn better on a full stomach. It therefore offers a wide variety of dishes to expose kids to new flavours, aromas, and textures. It also has the added benefit of relieving parents and caregivers of the burden of shopping for and preparing school lunches.

Yes! If you can get your child out of bed and out the door, breakfast is from 8am-8:30am.

Lunches are $2 for children in grades K-2 and $3 for children in grades 3-5. If finances are tight, please pay what you can. We will make sure your child(ren) receives lunch.

There is no charge for breakfast.

There are two ways to order, online with Munchalunch and by paper order form.

Log in to or register at Munchalunch.

When entering your profile, we ask that you add the parent’s name somewhere in your child’s profile. Sometimes, the last name of the child and the person ordering is different, and this made it difficult to offer refunds. Also, please take some time to enter any allergies your child may have. The school is already a nut-free zone. We also provide information on the Hot Lunch page about common allergens that may be in the lunches we serve.

In an effort to conserve paper, the school has decided it will not be sending home a form with each child. If you wish to order with the paper form, you can pick one up in the school lobby or download and print an order form the Hot Lunch page. Please return this form at least 2 days in advance so that we may prepare enough lunches.

We accept all forms for payment: Cash, debit, credit, e-transfers, and cheques. Please send e-transfers to contact@cecss. org and leave a note in the comment section so that we may identify your order.

Please make cheques out to Courtenay Elementary Community School Society.

We try. We want all students to be able to take part in the hot lunch program and try to accommodate students who don’t eat pork, are lactose intolerant, or vegetarian. Last year, we offered vegetarian lunches and accommodated students who didn’t eat pork or dairy.

If your child has an allergy and you wish to order lunch, please let us know of the allergy and we will do our best to provide an alternative.

When ordering, families will be able to see the ingredients in each meal and make the best decision for your child. If your child is celiac we recommend not ordering hot lunch as we can’t guarantee that meals are 100 per cent allergen free due to the risk of cross-contamination.

Absolutely! At least we think so! Lunch consists of a main dish with fruit and a salad. The students might not realize it, but we put a ton of finely-chopped vegetables in most of our dishes so the kids have no idea they are eating their vegetables. For the 2024/25 school year, we will make an effort to include dessert more often!

Here is a sample of past lunches.

No. One of the aims of the hot lunch program is to introduce new flavours, aromas, and textures. Please review the lunch menu with our child.

We understand that that your child(ren) might not eat the lunch they are served. We’ve noticed a lot of food waste on certain days. This is a result of several factors: being picky, not liking the lunch, having to eat with utensils, being distracted by friends, or not having enough time to eat. We don’t want kids to go hungry if they can’t or won’t eat their lunch, but we also don’t have the capacity to provide alternatives. If you think the lunch you ordered might be a challenge for your child(ren), please be sure to pack extra snacks in their backpacks.

The hot lunch program is a multi-ethnic lunch program by design. Students will be eating food from around the world such as Japanese (sushi rolls), Korean (bulgogi), Chinese (fried rice), Mexican (tacos), Indian (curry), and Italian (pasta).

Contact CECSS and we will refund your lunch. If you ordered via Muncalunch, we can credit your account if you wish.

You can make a donation through our Donate page or you can send donations directly via cheque or e-transfer. Please make cheques payable to Courtenay Elementary Community School Society. Send e-transfers to contact@cecss.org. CECSS will provide charitable tax receipts upon request.