We are honored to give the 2021 Food Charter Champion Award for Leadership to Koos Mohamed.
Koos grew up in Lewiston and is currently an undergraduate majoring in Education at the University of Southern Maine. Starting in 2020, when the pandemic had thrown public schools into uncertainty, Koos volunteered to work at Conners Elementary School in Lewiston to get classroom time to further her experiential education.
During the 2020-2021 school year, Koos volunteered many hours at the food pantry and Success Closet at Conners, which are programs that supply any student in need with food and/or clothing to take home. Koos also supported Farm to School efforts at Conners, packing apples and potatoes from local farms into pantry backpacks. Always stepping up when there was a need throughout the school year, Koos volunteered many hours, often in service of the most vulnerable youth. Koos’ efforts also provided welcome support to Conners Elementary staff and teachers during an unprecedented and stressful school year.
“I was grateful for the experience”, Koos said of her work at Conners. “It was a way to give back to my home – the community where I grew up.”
At USM, Koos is also minoring in Political Science with a focus on Race & Ethnic Studies. In the future, she hopes to continue to work in public education, possibly one day in school administration, to create positive change in education systems for youth.
ABOUT
Each year, the Good Food Council of Lewiston-Auburn hosts the Food Charter Champion Awards by celebrating the contributions of five individuals or groups from the greater Lewiston-Auburn area who strive to create a more vibrant and healthy food system from farm-to-fork. Those honored with awards ‘lead by example’ in one, or more, of the five principles of the LA Community Food Charter.
Learn more about the other 2021 Food Charter Champion Award winners here.