NORTHGLENN, Colo. -- Breakfast, it's well known, is the most important meal of the day.

That's why safety David Bruton spent his Tuesday morning at Hillcrest Elementary as part of the "It Starts with School Breakfast" campaign, a collaboration between Fuel Up to Play 60, Share Our Strength's "No Kid Hungry" campaign and Dean Foods. The assembly was hosted by Colorado dairy farm families through Western Dairy.

The idea is to increase school breakfast awareness and participation and to provide resources to help all kids start each day with the fuel they need to help them succeed.

Hillcrest earned the visit from Bruton -- and a surprise appearance from Miles the Mascot -- because the school saw a 60 percent increase in breakfast participation since it started serving breakfast in the classroom.

During the assembly, Bruton spoke to the students about what healthy foods were good for breakfast and why eating in the morning is important. He spoke about his own time teaching elementary school and admitted to the students that when he forgot his breakfast, keeping up with the kids was hard for him.

After talking about breakfast, Bruton called in Miles the Mascot as a surprise guest and the students got up and danced to the "Start Smart with Breakfast" song before heading back to class.

"With research showing more than 60 percent of students do not eat breakfast, school breakfast, specifically serving it for all students in the classroom, can be a solution and help kids succeed and fuel their potential," Western Dairy Senior Director of School Health and Wellness Programs Tami Anderson said.

Hillcrest Principal Judi Dauman, Adams 12 Superintendent Chris Gdowski and School Board Member Kathy Plomar were all in attendance to show their support for school breakfast. Other special guests included Western Dairy President and CEO Cindy Haren, Stephanie Ekoniak, CO Action for Healthy Kids, Tom Parker from Dean Foods/Robinson Dairy/Meadow Gold, Jody Berger with Share Our Strength Colorado, Dinah Frey and Sarah Skeen from Hunger Free Colorado, Amanda Mercer from Colorado Department of Education, Naomi Steenson, Adams 12 School Nutrition Director and Devin Koontz and David VonBuren, with USDA Mountain and Plains regional offices.

Join in the conversation about school breakfast all month long using the hashtag #schoolbreakfast on social media and log on to www.StartWithSchoolBreakfast.com to find out how to get breakfast started at your school.