INVERKIP Primary’s much loved dinner lady-in-chief was given a big send off as she hung up her ladle in the kitchen for the last time.

Catering manager Teresa O’Donoghue is moving on after nearly 20 years as the school’s friendly face at lunch time.

During her time at the school she has served thousands of children.

Teresa, from Port Glasgow, said: “Dinner ladies are always the pupils’ best friends.

“I will miss them all and it was very emotional when I left.

“Inverkip Primary is a great wee school with a real community.

“It is such a lovely team and I am sad to leave behind all the staff and pupils.”

In her time at the school Teresa has seen lots of change.

The number of meals the kitchen staff serve up has doubled as Inverkip grows and expands in size.

Teresa, 52, from Bridgend Avenue, said: “When I first started we served up 100 meals a day, now it is 200.

“Since I started there have been two extensions to the building.

“There has been a lot of change over the years, with the focus now on healthy eating.

“We make sure we give the children a good, healthy meal every day.”
Teresa would like to thank her team – Anne Murphy, Donna Galvin, Sharon Shearer and Lorraine McHaffie – for all their support.

She will now take over the reins at St Michael’s Primary in Port Glasgow, which is closer to her home and will enable her to spend extra time with her husband Joe, daughter Christine and her two grandchildren Daisy and Emily.

She said: “I’m sad to leave but I am taking on a new challenge.”