Like they say, not all heroes wear capes, but we have heroes with backpacks. One of them is an assistant headteacher at the western primary school in Grimsby in Lincolnshire, Zane Powls. The man hailed by everybody as a hero walks 8 kilometers every single day to deliver free school lunches to his underprivileged students.
Zane visits more than 70 students daily to distribute 18 kilograms of food to them. This tough trek would seem like a big deal to any average teacher but not Zane who is an ex-military man. Man is used to toughing it out. Asides from the primary purpose of feeding the kids, Zane uses the food deliveries to check in on the kids and see how they are holding up.
In an interview with a viral news outlet, Zane recounts how appreciative the kids and their parents are for his kind gesture. He states: “The reaction from the children and parents I have been delivering to has been fantastic and positive. The children come out all happy and smiling, say hi, grab their food, and then start looking through the bag. They then chat with me about what they’ve been doing and how they’re feeling. Most of them are doing very well”
“The parents love to chat as well as in a lot of the cases I may be the only other adult they see. I try and gauge how they are as well as their mental health will have a massive impact on the children’s. I try and support them as much as I can.”
As expected, this act of selflessness caught people's attention in no time;
The teacher is always appreciated in different ways by many people. AS some come out of their homes to say well done and clap for him, others beep their car horns as they drive by in a bid to stop him to have a conversation.
But all the attention he is getting seems to be much more than what the teacher could handle.
"All the attention and being called a hero/legend embarrasses me and makes me feel a little silly but it’s nice to hear that the job I’m doing is appreciated,” he said.
“Hundreds of people have said I should be recognized in one way or another for the effort I’m going to. The appreciation is nice but it also feels overwhelming for me.”
When the poverty situation of Grimsby was discussed, Zane pointed out that some big moves from the politicians are what could curb the situation. He further stated that Grimsby is now in a positive light thanks to all the attention from the media.
“I hope it’s been well received by the people of Grimsby as well as they’re an awesome group of down to earth people. When Grimsby is usually in the media it’s mostly a negative article. What this story shows is that the town is full of proud good people who don’t get enough positive media. I hope this media attention converts into support for the council and the people of Grimsby.”
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According to Zane, the lockdown does not seem to be ending anytime soon. “In my opinion, I can’t see primary schools being fully opened until September and this is because social distancing is not possible and the measures we as a staff will have to go to will make the school days extremely difficult and the changes needed would have a significant impact on the learning of the children.”
He added: “However, I feel that the transitional years could be allowed in (nursery/year 6) at first to prepare them for their next step in the learning journey. That being said, I can’t see this happening until the beginning of June at the earliest.”
The assistant teacher made it known that his school has always been open, even during the Easter Holidays. “It will continue to stay open for children of key workers, vulnerable children with social workers, and EHCP. We also are happy to take other children based on individual circumstances as we know our families very well so we will support them as much as we can, where we can.”
The teacher gives further explanation into what he does in the videos below.
Millions of people have seen him delivering school meals on foot in Grimsby. @peter_levy caught up with @zaneyteacher to ask him why he and his school were so determined to help. pic.twitter.com/wVHNYkEYtS— BBC East Yorks and Lincs (@looknorthBBC) April 15, 2020
This Deputy Headteacher walks five miles a day, delivering packed lunches to his pupils to make sure they still get a school dinner 🥪🚶🏻♂️👋🏻 pic.twitter.com/ulOH0qgVrK— BBC East Yorks and Lincs (@looknorthBBC) April 7, 2020
Zane Powell delivers the food to kids by placing the packed lunches on the doorsteps of his students, knocks on the door, and then waits nearby to make sure somebody picks up the food.
Zane revealed that many of the students' prayers were usually happy to see him as he is some form of "adult contact" they have when he arrives.
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Despite all the attention, Zane stays humble.
“The parents and children come to the window or the door to wave and say hello, some of the parents want to have a little chat—I think I’m the only adult contact they get to talk to some days,” he told the Independent.
“I’m usually quite a private person, so all the attention is kind of embarrassing, but we’re all just doing our job—the welfare of our students is our top priority and we’re just doing the best we can.”
Zane was quick to point out he is not the only one helping the kids but has a team consisting of other teachers who with their collective effort, can do the "donkey work ".
“Quite a lot of the families are struggling—they don’t want to drag their kids out to the shop, some of them are scared to leave their house. So I’m 100 percent happy to help and be there for them.”
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