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Media release
Tuesday, July 14, 2015
GOTAFE joins the cause to Eat Up
Goulburn Ovens Institute of TAFE (GOTAFE) has joined forces with Shepparton-
based charity Eat Up to ensure no local children face a day at school without a meal.
Eat Up was established in 2013 when local lad Lyndon Galea became aware that too
many Shepparton school children faced a day without adequate food.
The groundbreaking initiative aims to identify vulnerable children in schools facing
food insecurity and gains surplus food from Shepparton’s Foodshare charity network
to supply 500 sandwiches a month.
Shepparton-based GOTAFE’s culinary students help prepare the lunches on a
monthly basis to provide three local schools with much-needed meals to at-risk
students.
Lyndon, who was 25 when he started the initiative, explains how Eat Up supports
vulnerable students whose parents are experiencing varying distressing
circumstances, which can result in them being unable to provide food for their
children.
“Parents want to feed their kids but sometimes things are unavoidable and that’s why
we’re here – no child should ever have to go without food,” Lyndon explains.
“Eat Up provides a free lunch at no cost to the kids, parents or schools.” Lyndon
explains.
Meals are provided for any child who arrives at school without a lunch - this may
include children of parents who are welfare dependent, unemployed, newly arrived
refuges, Aboriginal, impacted by domestic violence, drug and alcohol abuse, mental
illness or who simply forgot their lunch for the day.
Thanks to the collaboration with Foodshare, primary schools and the volunteer
support from GOTAFE culinary students, Eat up is relatively cost effective, Lyndon
explains.
Shepparton GOTAFE has supported Eat Up from its earliest days, offering regular
support for food preparation and distribution.
GOTAFE Hospitality Commercial Manager, Ross Graham said the benefits of his
organisation’s involvement with the program include the ability for students to

2. understand and assist in food preparation to ensure that less fortunate students do
not go hungry.
“All our culinary students can achieve a positive outcome… when they all work
together, little steps create a supportive environment for the program,” Ross
explains.
“Lyndon should be congratulated for creating such an inspirational program,” he said.
Eat Up currently provides more than 500 lunches a month, including a sandwich,
piece of fruit and a snack, to three schools in Shepparton, three in Bendigo and two
in Melbourne.
The ultimate goal for Lyndon is to expand the program nationally by replicating the
successful model that has been built in Shepparton.
“Eat Up connects national organisations and plays each to their strength: food banks
for food, TAFE culinary departments for food preparation and handling, and primary
schools to identify and provide directly to disadvantaged children,” Lyndon explains.
“Australia-wide is the dream – and if we can do it, it will be thanks to what we started
here in Shep,” he said.
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For media information contact Ross Graham at GOTAFE on 58 332 710 or 0428
709 848 and Lyndon Galea at Eat Up on 0439 368 277.