A Tauranga business owner is doing her part to help the local community.

Sharna McElligott is the owner of The Nourished Eatery and every Wednesday donates 60 lunches to Greerton Village School.

She hopes to soon be able to expand to other schools in the area.

Sharna says they hope to feed 100 kids every week by the end of September.

'My parents have fostered children for over 20 years so I think since a young age seeing the amazing things my parents would do to help others has brushed off on me and I just need to pay it forward as often as I can,” says Sharna. 'It's just how I am.”

Sharna has done her part in the past by helping the homeless, but says now it is the least she could do by feeding the kids that are being sent off to school with no lunches.

'Hopefully they will appreciate this small gesture and pay it forward themselves when they can someday.”

Sharna is still relying on donations from the public in order for them to grow the number of child they can feed.

She bakes a few items every Tuesday for the children and after work every Tuesday they make the lunches.

A volunteer then collects the lunches and delivers the food on Wednesday.

Sharna says if anyone would like to donate loafs of bread and fruit, they can then turn them into healthy options that the kids will thrive off.