All children in Perry County can receive free breakfast and lunch during the summer session, which runs from Monday to Friday through June 16.
Food services director Debby Baer said the program was originally only open to attendees of the summer session, but in recent years it has been able to expand to all community members.
“The program has been around for a long time, but until recently we were only able to provide meals for our camp enrollees,” Baer said. “When Covid hit, we were allowed to start offering it to the community members also, and we have taken advantage of that since then.
Any child aged 1-18 in Perry County is eligible for the free meals. Any student enrolled in the summer session is automatically eligible.
Breakfast is available from 7:20 to 8:30 a.m. at the Primary Center and Central cafeterias. Lunch is available at the Primary Center from 10:50 a.m. to 11:30 a.m. at the Central Cafeteria, and from 11:00 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. at the Primary Center.
The school system must be contacted ahead of time to plan accordingly for the amount of meals needed. Parents can contact Baer by phone at 573-547-7500 Ext. 1220 or by email at dbaer@pcsd32.com.
Baer said she is happy that the school system is able to fight against food insecurity during the summer, which can be a difficult time for some families when it comes to providing food for children while school is not in session.
“I have learned since taking this position as director that unfortunately there is food insecurity in our town,” Baer said. “So it is very beneficial that we can offer this to our kids so they can get some food, and we can help them get through the summer.”
