By Rebecca Rider

SALISBURY — Rowan-Salisbury Schools will launch its countywide Summer Feeding Program on Thursday.

The Summer Feeding Program is an annual, federally funded program that serves breakfast, lunch and snacks to any child ages 3 to 18. Meals are free, and children do not have to be RSS students to eat at meal sites.

Program organizers are expecting to serve 3,000 lunches Thursday.

“Which has surpassed any day we’ve ever done,” said Lisa Altmann, RSS food and nutrition director.

Last summer, Altmann and organizer Meredith Honeycutt said sites served a total of 135,999 meals. Many of those went to children who don’t have a stable food source when school is not in session.

“It tugs on your heartstrings,” Honeycutt said of the work.

This year, the Summer Feeding Program will deliver food to 130 sites. But Honeycutt said not all of those sites are available to all children. Some are at summer camps, which may run only a week or a few days. Those meals will be available only to children who have registered for the camp.

But many of the sites are open to any child at meal times. Most of the sites, Altmann said, are affiliated with local housing authorities or parks and recreation departments.

The district even has a few mobile sites — buses that drive into rural neighborhoods, park and let children on board to eat lunch. Altmann said she and others involved with the program are hoping to outfit the buses as “mini-restaurants” like the program’s official “yum yum bus,” which has air conditioning and diner-like counters set up inside.

“We’re still striving for that.”

In previous years, the arrival of lunch and breakfast has been heralded with a honk and the appearance of a large yellow Penske truck.

“And they’ll just take off running,” Altmann said of the children.

This year, Honeycutt said, the district accepted a bid from Enterprise — so the trucks delivering food will be white, not yellow. Harwood Signs in Granite Quarry made magnets to stick on each truck so that it can be clearly identified as a feeding program vehicle.

Books will be handed out at each site, and some school principals plan to come out and read to students.

“(They) want to stay connected to the kids,” Altmann said.

It’s part of the program’s goal, she said, to feed more than just kids’ stomachs.

“I think it’s about their whole being,” she said.

Contact reporter Rebecca Rider at 704-797-4264. 

 

Open sites run between June 15 and Aug. 18, Monday through Friday. There will be no service July 3 and 4.

• A Mother’s Choice Children’s Center, 1319 Standish St. Breakfast at 8:05 a.m., lunch at 11:30 a.m.
• Central United Methodist Church, 200 Fourth St., Spencer. Lunch at 12:30 p.m.
• City Park Recreation Center, 316 Lake Drive. Lunch at 12:15 p.m.
• First Presbyterian Church, 308 W. Fisher St. Lunch at 12:40 p.m.
• First Reformed Church, 210 N. Central Ave., Landis. Lunch at noon.
• Hall’s Gym, 1400-B W. Bank St. Lunch at 12:15 p.m.
• Patterson Farm Market & Tours, 10390 Caldwell Road, Mount Ulla. Lunch at 12:30 p.m.
• S&H Youth & Adult Services,  714 S. Main St. Breakfast at 10 a.m., lunch at 1:15 p.m.
• Salisbury Housing Authority, East Lafayette, 1042 E. Lafayette St. Breakfast at 9:15 a.m., lunch at noon.
• Salisbury Housing Authority, Linn Lane Apartments. Breakfast at 8:15 a.m., lunch at 11 a.m.
• Salisbury Housing Authority, Brookview Apartments, 711 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. Lunch at 1 p.m.
• Salisbury Housing Authority, Pine Hill Apartments, 410 W. 15th St. Breakfast at 9:40 a.m., lunch at 12:30 p.m.
• St. Peter’s Lutheran Church, 2510 St. Peter’s Church Road. Lunch at noon.
• The Salvation Army, 620 Bringle Ferry Road. Breakfast at 9 a.m., lunch at 11:45 a.m.
• Tomorrow’s Future Summer Camp at Holy Tabernacle of Jesus Christ, 325 Malcolm Road. Breakfast at 8:30 a.m., lunch at 11:55 a.m.
• Salisbury Civic Center, Salisbury Parks & Recreation Department, 315 S. Martin Luther King Jr. Ave. Lunch at 12:45 p.m.
• Fred Corriher Jr. YMCA, 950 Kimball Road, China Grove. Breakfast at 9:05 a.m., lunch at 11:50 a.m.
• Saleeby-Fisher YMCA, 790 Crescent Road, Rockwell. Breakfast at 7:40 a.m., lunch at 11:30 a.m.
• Save the Children Community Center, 102 S. Long St., East Spencer. Breakfast at 8:45 a.m., lunch at 11:45 a.m.
• J.F. Hurley Family YMCA, 828 Jake Alexander Blvd W. Breakfast at 8:20 a.m., lunch at 11:45 a.m.

Open sites with separate schedules:

• At the Cross Ministries, 201 W. D Ave. June 20-Aug. 10. Lunch at 11:15 a.m.
• Emmanuel Youth Experience, 306 Barbour St., East Spencer. June 19-June 23 and July 24-Aug. 18. Breakfast at 8 a.m., lunch at 11:15 a.m.
• Granite Quarry Elementary School, 118 S. Walnut St., Granite Quarry. June 15-Aug. 18, Tuesdays and Thursdays only. Lunch at 11:30 a.m.
• Horizon’s Unlimited, 1636 Parkview Circle. Monday-Thursday. Lunch at 11 a.m.
• Rowan County Housing Authority, Grant Street Community Center, 300 Grant St., East Spencer. Monday-Thursday. Breakfast at 8:30 a.m., lunch at 11:30 a.m.
• Rowan County Housing Authority, Running Brook Community Center, 2200 Running Brook Drive, Kannapolis. June 15-Aug. 18, Monday-Thursday. Breakfast at 9:25 a.m., lunch at 12:30 p.m.

Mobile sites

• Ashley’s Mobile Home Park, Cedar Drive and Ashley Drive. Lunch at 10:15 a.m.
• Benchmark Apartments, 848 Lillian St., China Grove. Lunch at 10:45 a.m.
• Campbell Road and Spring Meadow Drive, Woodleaf. Lunch at 11:55 a.m.
• Cedar Glen Mobile Home Park, Cedar Glen Circle, Cleveland. Lunch at 12:30 p.m
• Deer Park Apartments, 300 Academy St., Cleveland. Lunch at 11:45 a.m.
• Dunnsview Drive and Harris Granite Road. Lunch at 11:45 a.m.
• Harrison Road and Independence Drive. Lunch at 1:05 p.m.
• Lowder Mobile Home Park North, 225 U.S. 29 N., China Grove. Lunch at 10:30 a.m.
• Lowder Mobile Home Park South, 320 U.S. 29 S., China Grove. Lunch at 10 a.m.
• Matika Village Mobile Home Park, Airport Road and Sarah Ellen Lane. Lunch at 11 a.m.
• Matika Village Mobile Home Park, 228 Dollie Circle. Lunch at 10:30 a.m.
• Needmore Road and Erwin Temple Church Road, Woodleaf. Lunch at 11:40 a.m.
• Oak Haven Mobile Home Park, 775 Airport Road. Lunch at 1 p.m.
• Oak Mountain Mobile Home Park, Oak Mountain Road and Goodnight. Lunch at 11 a.m.
• Peach Orchard Road and Ridge Street. Lunch at 10 a.m.
• Pearl Street Apartments, Pearl Street and Morlan Park Road. Lunch at 12:35 p.m.
• Ro-Well Apartments, 923 China Grove Highway, Rockwell. Lunch at 11 a.m.
• 140 Titan Drive. Lunch at 1 p.m.
• Town Court Mobile Home Park, Mooresville Road and Town Court. Lunch at 11 a.m.
• Woodleaf Mobile Home Park, U.S. 801 and Wrangler Road, Woodleaf. Lunch at 11:15 a.m.

Kannapolis City Schools meal locations, Monday-Thursday June 19-Aug. 3. Lunch from 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

• Woodrow Wilson Elementary, 800 Walnut St.
• A.L. Brown High School, 415 E. First St.
• Forest Park Elementary, 1333 Forest Park Drive.
• Cannon Memorial YMCA, 101 YMCA Drive.