TRSD summer meal program sites in valley run June 14 to Aug. 20
From our weekly issue dated June 09, 2010
Although school classes are dismissed for the summer, children throughout Illinois Valley still can be assured of nutritious daily meals.
The Three Rivers School District (TRSD) summer food program is set to kick off Monday, June 14, and will run until Aug. 20. Approximately 17 locations throughout Josephine County have committed to hosting the program, with seven in the Cave Junction area.
Michael Morris, TRSD Food & Nutrition Services director, said that the program has been running for at least seven years. He said that approximately 38,000 meals were served last summer through the program, funded through the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture (USDA).
“When school is not in play, our honest opinion is that there are many students out there who don“t have food on the table on a regular basis,“ Morris said. “This is an opportunity to feed those kids in that event.“
Each meal comes complete with fruit, vegetables, milk, bread and at least 2 ounces of protein.
“We are required by USDA protocol to meet the nutritional value for each meal we serve in order to reach reimbursement,“ Morris said.
“The district makes money off the program, and the kids get fed. It“s a win-win.“
Meals include such child favorites as peanut butter and jelly sandwiches, hot dogs and corn dogs.
“It“s all kid-friendly,“ Morris said. “We“re not serving liver and onions.“
The program is open to children ages 1 through 18.
No identification is required for age verification, he said.
Starting July 7 and through July 30, meals will be served at Evergreen Elementary School at 520 W. River St. Mondays through Thursdays.
Breakfast will be served from 8:30 to 9 a.m.; lunch from 11:30 a.m. to noon.
More information is available by phoning Janie Heller at 541-592-3136.
Illinois Valley high School, at 625 E. River St., will host the program Mondays through Thursdays from June 28 to July 23.
Breakfast will be served from 8 to 8:30 a.m.; lunch from noon to 12:30 p.m.
For more information, phone JoAnn Bethany at 541-592-2116.
From June 14 to Aug. 20, Lifelines Thrift Store at 319-B S. Redwood Hwy. will host the program. Breakfast will be served from 9:30 to 10 a.m., with lunch from 12:30 to 1 p.m. For more information, phone Melanie Hoskins at 541-287-0191.
Located at 113 S. Caves Ave., Community Bible Church will run the program one week only: Monday, June 21 through Friday, June 25.
Lunch will be served from noon to 12:30 p.m. For more information, phone Sharon Skiles at 541-592-6269.
The Illinois Valley Safe House Alliance at 103 S. Kerby Ave., will serve lunch from 12:45 to 1:15 p.m. from June 16 to 18. For more information, phone Grace Auzenne at 541-592-2515.
New to the program is the Deer Creek Ranch of Siskiyou Field Institute, located at 1241 Illinois River Road in Selma. Breakfast will be served there from 9:15 to 9:45 a.m., with lunch from 11:30 a.m. to noon from June 14 through Aug. 13.
For more information, phone Sherri Graham at 541-597-8530, Ext. 315.
From June 21 through Aug. 20, meals will be available at the Illinois Valley Boys & Girls Club at Evergreen Elementary. Lunch will be served from 11:30 a.m. to noon Mondays through Fridays, with snacks offered from 3 to 3:30 p.m. For more information, phone Scott Thornhill at 541-592-4771.
Morris said that anyone interested in hosting the program still can.
“Generally, we look for sites that a lot of kids can come to,“ he said. “There is no cost to anybody. It“s a service to programs that may operate during the summer as a draw to those programs.
“We“ve opened in several churches in the community who do Bible camps, and they can advertise that they provide breakfast and lunch for the kids.“
The summer food program is intended to benefit children and families throughout the county, Morris explained.
“There are a lot of kids out there in a poverty situation, with the way it is in the state of Oregon and primarily in Josephine County,“ Morris said. “We feel it“s a great opportunity over any we“ve had this year to provide meals for these kids. We look forward to servicing as many kids as we can.“
For more information, phone Morris at 476-4183.
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