LIMA, Ohio (WLIO) - Lima City Schools’ Summer Lunch Program had a fun surprise for the kids. The Spartan Lunch Express made a stop at Faurot P…
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“The staff that we have this year, they're very qualified, so it's encouraging to have a lot of yearly returners coming back and being leaders again for consecutive years, building relationships and bonds with everybody,” said Julia Washington-Allen, Summer Playground Coordinator. “It's also very important to us that we hire individuals who work with children throughout the year, so having teachers who are qualified to teach and to interact with these children and be positive influences is something that we strive for every year.”
Children from 1 to 18 years of age are able to get a hot meal Monday through Thursday through July 31st. School officials want people to understand this is for any child, not just Lima City School students.
“On June 9, we are actually having Lunch, the Ohio summer lunch mascot, coming,” said Carrie Woodruff, food service director for Lima City Schools. “He’s going to be giving out coloring pages, and we’ll have a few giveaways. He’s coming to support our summer lunch program.”
The Spartan Lunch Express is making stops in three of the City of Lima's parks this summer. Kids up to 18 years of age can get a free grab-and-go lunch. The brown bag lunch today had a choice of a chicken sandwich or a crustable with fruit and milk. The van was greeted by dozens of families looking forward to a picnic lunch.
The Lima City Schools' summer lunch program is in overdrive as thousands of meals have already been served in the first 2 weeks. This year’s program is a “carry out” to meet the COVID restrictions in place. Any child from 1 year to 18 years of age are eligible for up to 5 lunches and 5 breakfasts along with a box of food from the West Ohio Food Bank. School officials say they have distributed nearly 7-thousand meals so far with the federally funded program.
Lima City Schools will once again be the host for the Summer Lunch Program through the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Children and teens between the ages of 1 and 18-years-old can come to any of the five sites and get a nutritious meal they may not otherwise get. The meals are not just for Lima City School students but for any child that wants one. They begin Monday, June 10th and this year's meals will include a little something extra.
The goal is to make sure area youngsters get a hot meal most weekdays during the summer.
