By Andrew Edwards
Staff Writer
There are true heroes in the Elmore County community, and they lie within the county’s Child Nutrition Program.
When schools closed their doors last March due to the coronavirus pandemic, many were wondering how children across Elmore County would be getting their necessary number of daily meals. The Elmore County nutrition program acted quickly and helped to serve more than 2.2 million dishes from March to August of 2020.
Five different locations were set up across the county, allowing families to come by early in the afternoon to pick up their child’s meal for the day. Their last food distribution was on Monday, August 3rd.
However, that didn’t stop Cayce Davis, Director of the Elmore County Child Nutrition Program, and other staff members from coming up with another program to support children across the county as the calendar year rolled along.
Thus, the Farm to Schools Program was created for the 2020-2021 academic year. The program incentivizes schools to purchase and serve more Alabama food items, providing heathier options for children across the state.
On Monday, April 5, the Alabama Department of Agriculture and Industries presented Davis with a $7,913.25 check to help fund the Farm to Schools Program. The Alabama Legislature appropriated $120,000 in the 2020 budget to help schools increase their local purchases with additional funds currently set aside in the budget this year.
“During the height of covid, we noticed that a lot of farmer’s product in the area wasn’t being bought, so we thought it could be of use if it was purchased by our school system,” Davis said.
Watermelons, peaches, and other fruit grown in the state have all been sent to eligible schools across Elmore County.
“It’s a great opportunity for our schools because it’s not only healthier foods for the students, but it’s also fresher. Ordering lettuce from California isn’t going to have near as long of a shelf life as lettuce grown in Alabama,” Davis said.
For the past eight months all 14 schools in the Elmore County school system have had non-contact meals for those who are attending in-person class. Each day, students order the meal that they would like for the next day, which typically ranges from two hot to three cold options.
“We package everything in containers, and we try to prep all the food a week in advance – but sometimes we only have three or four days to get everything ready. It can be pretty hectic at times,” Davis said.
Now, the summer food program from 2020 and the farm to school program will come full circle this summer as the Elmore County Child Nutrition Program plans on preparing meals once again.
“We want to be there to support our farmers and for the Elmore County community as a whole. This couldn’t have been done without such a supportive staff and active county school system,” Davis said.
Details on the summer meal program have yet to be specified; however, continue to check elmoreco.org for updates.
