Starkville schools provide meals for students for month of June
STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – For many years, the Starkville Oktibbeha County School District has been on the front line in the fight against hunger.
“The school district has been a sponsor for the USDA summer feeding program for many years way before I came into this position. It is a wonderful program that is important to our community to have access to every summer,” said Ginny Hill, Starkville Oktibbeha Child Nutrition Director.
According to Feeding America, 22 million children depend on school breakfast and lunch programs. When summer break hits, many of those children may miss two important meals a day. Hill said the summer meal programs are here to help.
“This program really bridges the gap for students who might have food insecurities, or their parents might be at work during the day and need someone to provide meals. So, this is a great way for them to go from school into the summer, with this program,” said Hill.
“They can get two meals a day. Here, we are serving breakfast and lunch, and students can come get both meals every day,” said Hill.
Hill also says the summer meals help ease the stress of parents who are struggling to provide meals for their children
“With the meal prices and grocery prices going up, this is a good way for parents to alleviate some of that summer budget by coming and eating meals with us. Parents can also purchase a meal for a small fee of $3.25 for lunch and two dollars for breakfast,” said Hill.
The meals are for any child, 18 or younger. Hill said they average around 400 students a day.
The program will run from June 3 through to June 28.
