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TTHENAAGO/NAHANNI BUTTE
Students at a small Deh Cho region school are capitalizing on an unmet demand, of the pizza pie variety, in their community.

Leanna Vital is one of the Charles Yohin School students operating CYS Pizza. - photo courtesy of Charles Yohin School

The junior high students at Charles Yohin School have been operating CYS Pizza, a pizza delivery business out of their school, to raise money for their year-end trip, and the success of the venture is in the product, they say.

"Selling pizza is pretty good," Grade 9 student Leanna Vital told News/North. "Everybody likes pizza."

Nobody else serves pizza in Nahanni Butte, principal Jeffery Planetta said, so his school's pizzeria has been received well.

"We get feedback all the time from the customers," Planetta said. "People look forward to it, especially if it's preceding a long weekend or something like that, so they don't have to cook."

The pizzas are delivered uncooked on planned pizza days to customers in the community of about 100 to 115. There are four types of pizza on the menu, including pepperoni, Hawaiian, and meat lovers.

The busiest pizza day this year saw 25 orders go out. By holding at least one pizza day every month, the students have raised enough to pay the capital costs back, in addition to more than $1,000 toward their year-end trip to Fort Nelson, B.C.

Vital, 15, wants to pursue a career in the visual arts but, like the rest of the students, she is racking up good experience through the school pizzeria to put on her resume.

"It teaches all kinds of lessons," Panetta said. "Teamwork, cooperation, a sense of independence, responsibility, organizational skills, time management skills, math skills ... I can go on and on."

The students were given about $500 at the beginning of the school year to purchase the initial supplies, were taught about the break-even point and customer service, and have been advertising and marketing to create sales to repay the loan.

Like any business, CYS Pizza has challenges, including getting the pizza supplies delivered to the community, and labour shortages.

The business will be continued next year, but it is not yet certain about the year after since the majority of the older students will have moved on to high school in Fort Simpson.

CYS Pizza will hold one more pizza day before the end of the school year, later this month.

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