School division has served more than a million meals during pandemic
Chesterfield County Public Schools recently surpassed 1 million meals served to students during the global pandemic, a time during which schools are closed to in-person instruction but students still need support. The school division hopes to double that total this summer through an expanded summer feeding program.
“Our food service workers are heroes to many in our community,” Superintendent Merv Daugherty said. “The work they have done to prepare food, bag it for families to take home and deliver it to students has helped numerous families make sure their children are fed. I have personally visited many of these service locations, and the smiles on the students’ and expression of thanks from parents are extremely gratifying for our staff.”
The summer feeding program, which started June 15 and runs through Aug. 31, includes 17 Chesterfield County school sites that will serve breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner; 28 community locations serviced by the school division that will provide breakfast, lunch, snack, and dinner; and three Chesterfield County schools sites that will serve breakfast and lunch.
From June 15 to Aug. 31, meals will be served on Mondays and Thursdays listed on the locations on CCPS’s website. Three days’ worth of meals will be provided on Mondays, and four days’ worth of meals will be provided on Thursdays. No meals service is available Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Fridays.
Any child between the ages of 2 and 18 is eligible to receive meals through the federal program operating under the guidance of the United States Department of Agriculture. Children do not have to be present for a parent, guardian, or older sibling to pick up a meal. However, the visitor will need to provide a student’s name and age.
“While we are excited to celebrate the one million meal milestone, we remain concerned about other students who are in need of healthy, nutritious meals during this time,” Food and Nutrition Services Director Pearl Taylor said. “We are on pace to serve one million fewer meals this year than we did during the 2018-19 school year, and [we]are concerned about whether our students have access to the meals they might otherwise receive in school. We hope all students will take advantage of this summer feeding program if needed.”
Menu items for the summer feeding schedule include but are not limited to:
Breakfast: swirl rolls, mini pancakes, chicken biscuit, mini waffles, cereal, breakfast bars, and fresh fruit.
Lunch and dinner: Deli sandwich, corn dogs, hot dogs, chicken filet sandwich, pizza slices, meatball subs, teriyaki chicken, barbecue, chicken fajita tacos, calzones, macaroni and cheese, and fresh vegetables.
In addition to keeping students connected to their school through weekly visits, the meals service program:
Affords thousands of students the opportunity to continue to have access to health food choices while schools are closed;
Keeps approximately 400 local residents employed with the school division while unemployment throughout Virginia continues to climb;
Supports local farmers through the purchase of locally grown produce and local dairies through the purchase of milk.
