For 30 years Mrs Hooper has coordinated students lunches, from heating up warm pies in winter to wrapping salad rolls in the summer.

Mrs Hooper said it was an emotional time, but now, it's her time to move on to the next stage of her life, travelling and spending time with her grandchildren.

Mrs Hooper started volunteering in the canteen when her two daughters first attended the Primary School.

"They school graduated to the fact they wanted to have a paid employee in the canteen," she said.

"Our canteen has always been a pre-order type system where the orders are written out by the parents and the lunches delivered to the classroom.

"Food choices over the years has changed a lot. Constraints around food safety play a big role and more healthy choices are on offer than ever before. Not that we've really sold lollies in the past but there have been some little treats on offer for the children over the years."

As diets have evolved, Mrs Hooper said she could see the difference in food choices from the students.

"Chicken nuggets are our biggest demand, an item we would have never had when I first started," she said.

"I don't know if they were even invented.

"Pies were probably the most popular 30 years ago and then moved onto party pies.

"Now, it would have to be chicken nuggets and steamed dim sims."

Mrs Hooper said she felt "very fortunate" to be part of the school environment.

"It's lovely to be able to be part of children's lives," she said.

"Because my girls have grown up and moved away I haven't got my grandchildren here.

"It's also nice to get to know all the different volunteers. Some I would never have probably crossed paths with being out in the community."

RELATED: Stawell Primary School principal Robyn Jones 'chuffed' by education excellence award

Mrs Hooper said it was sad when the children graduated from primary school but she still gets a buzz from when she is approached outside of school from students she has interacted with in the past.

"There's always certain kids, who when they see me up the street, will say hello," she said.

"It's nice to know you've been part of their lives, even if it was in such a small way."

Onto the next phase of her life, Mrs Hooper is looking forward to travelling in her caravan.

"My husband and I are looking forward to doing some volunteering in central Australia," she said.

"I also can't wait to spend time with my grandchildren and go off to grandparents day with them."

School staff will host a morning tea to congratulate Mrs Hooper on her career and thank her for services.

While you're with us, you can now receive updates straight to your inbox each Friday morning from the Stawell Times-News. To make sure you're up-to-date with all the news from across the Northern Grampians shire, sign up here.