More people are taking advantage of Greenwood’s free summer meal program this year.
Greenwood’s program is part of a larger initiative funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that allows any school with at least 50 percent of its children qualifying for free or reduced-price meals to host a summer feeding program.
The sites must also have enough participation to warrant staying open, and while Greenwood has seen an increase in the number of children participating, Clark-Pleasant’s participation has remained roughly the same compared to last summer, and Edinburgh’s has decreased considerably.
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The increase in the number of children eating free meals at Isom Elementary School, Greenwood Community Schools’ feeding site, is likely due to people being more aware of the program, said Cheryl Hargis, food services director.
Isom Elementary, which serves food from 11 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday, is averaging about 50 children a day, up from about 35 last summer. It is the second consecutive year participation has increased, Hargis said.
“I think it’s very important for the kids. It gives them at least one hot meal per day, and I wish more parents would take advantage of it,” Hargis said.
To promote the program, Greenwood schools put up signage, advertised it on its website and sent newsletters home with students. About 63 percent of the students at Isom Elementary received free or reduced-price lunch during the 2018-19 school year, according to the Indiana Department of Education.
Edinburgh Community Schools doesn’t provide a summer meal program, so last year, Girl Scout Abby Sweets sprang into action to fill that need, launching a program that served 1,500 free meals in 16 days.
This year, about 50 percent fewer children are taking advantage of that program. About 50 children eat free meals on Tuesdays at Edinburgh Parks and Recreation, and only about 30 stay after the town’s summer youth club to eat on Fridays. Having the program on different days might result in a better turnout next year, said Kim Cox, an Ivy Tech Community College student who took over the program this year.
What happens next year, including whether the program continues at all, is no guarantee, said Sherry Wilson, Edinburgh United Methodist Church secretary.
Volunteers arrive at the church at 10 a.m., to make spaghetti and meatballs, salad, sausage links, Mickey Mouse waffles and more. On average, about 10 volunteers rotate helping make the food and serve it twice a week, Cox said.
Clark-Pleasant Schools closed two of its four sites due to low turnout last year, but kept its Sawmill Woods Preschool and Pleasant Crossing Elementary School sites open, said Kim Combs, Clark-Pleasant food services director.
Turnout has varied widely, with Sawmill Woods serving anywhere between 19 and 132 children, and averaging about 80 children on any given day, said Kim Combs, Clark-Pleasant’s food services director.
At Pleasant Crossing, a summer reading program boosted participation in the meal program to more than 200 children each day, but since the reading program ended in mid-June, that average has dropped to less than 100.
Overall, participation at the two sites mirrors the total for all four sites last summer. To help maintain interest, workers at the two sites have created a food schedule that only repeats every three weeks. Last year, it repeated every two weeks, she said.
New additions to the menu include: country-fried steak, Salisbury steak, chicken drumsticks and soft tacos. Cheese pizza is also a popular dish. Children range in age from six months old to high school, Combs said.
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Sites are open to all children 18 years and younger, and all students enrolled in a state-approved educational program for the mentally or physically disabled.
Clark-Pleasant Schools
Lunch at Pleasant Crossing and Sawmill Woods Preschool; Monday through Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., through July 19.
Edinburgh
Lunch at Edinburgh Parks and Recreation; Tuesdays and Fridays from noon to 1 p.m., through July 30.
Franklin Schools (all sites Monday through Friday through July 31).
Franklin Parks and Recreation; lunch from 11:30 a.m. to noon and afternoon snack from 1:45 to 2 p.m.
Northwood Elementary School; breakfast from 8 to 9 a.m. and 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Boys and Girls Club of Franklin; lunch from 11:15 a.m. to noon and afternoon snack from 1:45 to 2 p.m.
Greenwood Schools
Lunch at V O ISOM Elementary School; Monday through Friday from 11 a.m. to noon, through July 19.
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