Episode 7 (March 25th) Guest spotlight: ONFE's Impactful Journey with Heather Norris

In this episode of Ottawa Business Matters, host Sam Laprade interviews Heather Norris, President and CEO of the Ottawa Network for Education (ONFE), discussing the organization's adaptive efforts during the pandemic to ensure children had access to food despite school closures. They shifted their school breakfast program to deliver over 700,000 meal kits in collaboration with local agencies. The conversation extends to ONFE's important relationship with the business community, highlighting their partnership with the Ottawa Board of Trade and Ottawa Business Journal to support programs like JA Ottawa, which focuses on financial literacy and career readiness for youth. Heather Norris also emphasizes the need for a national school food program in Canada, stressing that current demands have outstripped resources, with the program now serving over 17,000 meals daily. The episode wraps up with a call to action for more community and government support for ONFE's initiatives and an invitation to their upcoming fundraising event, the Spark Soiree.