Document text
Photo by Ray Pettengell Desare Noonchester, 6, tests the taste of the mustard before eating her hamburger at Jackson School's summer lunch program. Yes, there is a free lunch Summer food program offers good fun and nutrition for kids By MARK FREEMAN EDITOR'S NOTE : This story is one in a series about local children's lives during the summer. The stories appear on Mondays throughout the summer. Michael Hamilton stopped shoveling potato chips in his 6-year-old mouth just long enough to negotiate a big bite out of his cheeseburger, then smiled. Summer food at schools Here are the dates and locations for the summer food program in Medford and Phoenix-Talent school districts. MEDFORD June 21 through Aug. 20 -- South Medford High School and Howard, Jackson and Roosevelt elementary schools. Breakfast and lunch served. Jefferson School -- July 19-29, lunch only. Oak Grove School -- July 26 to Aug. 12, lunch only. Wilson School -- Aug. 9-19, lunch only. PHOENIX-TALENT Phoenix Elementary School -- June 21 to Aug. 13, breakfast and lunch. Talent Elementary School -- June 21 to Aug. 13, breakfast and lunch. Orchard Hill Elementary School -- Aug. 2-13, lunch only. There is only one thing better than a cheeseburger for a summer lunch -- and that's a free cheeseburger. "If I wasn't eating this," Hamilton says, "I'd probably have a soda." "I'd probably be having a Capri Sun," chirps Alex Parke, 10, from across the table. But it's burgers, chips, fruit and milk for these boys' lunch, courtesy of Uncle Sam. Hamilton, Parke and 194 others like them find good food and fun inside Medford's Jackson School cafeteria on a sunny summer afternoon. This is the summer food program, where kids 1 through 18 can enjoy a free meal at Rogue Valley school cafeterias open for the summer. The food is much the same as the meals kids can get during the school year. Unlike the regular school program, however, there are no enrollment or income guidelines to determine who gets a free meal. Most sites provide breakfast and lunch, while other schools open their cafeterias only during the summer school sessions, and they serve just lunch. The meals are paid for through the USDA nutrition program, which will provide an estimated 15,000 free kids' meals this summer in Medford, Phoenix and Talent. "The menu is basically the regular school year menu, except we only offer one item during the summer," says John Stone, director of food services for Marriot Food Services, which serves the Medford and Phoenix-Talent school districts. "It's usually of our most popular items, hamburgers or pizza or chicken nuggets." The breakfast menu is simple -- cereal, fruit and milk. "That's just because the numbers are low," Stone says. "Kids want to sleep in in the summer." But those up for lunch often find fine combinations of healthy foods and kids' foods. One day finds them grazing on quesadilla and zucchini sticks, followed the next day by corn dogs and carrots. One favorite is pizza, which is balanced by cauliflower. Milk is also provided, and the kids must take the fruits and vegetables to get the main entree. "I don't like pizza, but I tried a little nibble," says Nikki Kline, a 10-year-old chatterbox from Medford. "I liked it, so I had three pieces after that." On a recent cheeseburger day, Kline and pal Diana Blunkall, 9, feasted on burgers and fruit. Without the meal provided to them, they would have likely eaten sandwiches. "The best part about this? It's cooked," Blunkall says. And there is plenty of it. There are seconds available to a small percentage of kids, but usually even hungry boys like Parke don't need to double-dip. "By the time I'm done with my milk," he says, "I'm filled up." Mail Tribune Copyright � The Mail Tribune 1999, Medford, Oregon USA