Harrison County School District offers summer feeding program
In Harrison County, the school district is stepping up to ensure that children in the community have access to nutritious meals with its successful summer feeding program.
Cafeteria Manager Latisha Crawford said, “The program has been going on forever. When I was a little girl. I faithfully went to North Gulfport Elementary. My momma used to tell me. You better get down there if you want to eat. We used to walk down there.”
The Harrison County program is one of the largest in the state. Child Nutrition Director Brad Barlow said, “In our school district, out of 15,000 students, three out of four receive free or reduced lunch during the school year. We operate seamlessly. As soon as the school year ends, we open our sites to provide the services that are needed. We serve hot breakfast and lunch every day, all summer long.”
The program has expanded this year to ten locations, spread out equally throughout Harrison County from D’Iberville to Pass Christian and even as far north as Lizana, where they added Lizana Elementary to their list. “Eating good and healthy is a very important thing for families. They have fruit and vegetables. The milk is good. They have some kind of juice. It’s good they have something for the kids that don’t have money for breakfast or lunch.”
The children couldn’t be happier with the program.
The summer feeding program not only provides nourishment but also creates a positive and enjoyable experience for these children.
The program is free to children 18 and under regardless of their school district. Adults can buy a meal for $3.65. Breakfast is from 8 to 10 a.m. and lunch runs from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. weekdays through July 28th.
