West Middlesex schools host feeding program

Jul. 27—WEST MIDDLESEX — During the school year, the West Middlesex elementary cafeteria would normally be filled with tables of children talking, laughing and eating — although a recent meal saw only a couple tables of children having lunch.

While the smaller group may give the appearance that things have slowed when it comes to feeding students, the cafeteria staff at the West Middlesex Area School District have been busy feeding students from across Mercer County.

"They know the menu patterns, they know the rules and regulations, they know the temperatures, they do it all," West Middlesex school Food Service Director Marie Popatak said of her staff.

West Middlesex school officials originally organized a food distribution program in the spring of 2020, when buses and other school vehicles were used to bring meals to the students' homes after the COVID-19 pandemic's lockdowns suddenly closed schools across Pennsylvania.

School officials organized a program that continued to deliver meals to students at home while also feeding students involved in summer programs such as band camp, sports, summer school or Success By Six.

This year would have marked a return to the district's traditional summer feeding program, which focused on feeding students involved in summer programs without home deliveries.

However, Popatak said the district was contacted by Lori Schaller, co-director of the United Way of Mercer County, who said that students in summer programs at Sharpsville, Greenville, Mercer and Jamestown were receiving cold meals.

Since West Middlesex Area School District qualified as an "open site," meaning it could support feeding students from other districts, Schaller asked if Popatak and her staff could provide the students from those additional four districts with meals.

According to Popatak, the staff enthusiastically approached this task.

"My staff jumped right on the boat and said, 'absolutely, we will feed those students,'" she said.

Although some districts' summer feeding needs are coming to a close, Popatak said the program fed 75 students from West Middlesex, 75 students from Sharpsville, 40 students from Greenville, 20 students from Jamestown, and 20 students from Mercer.

Popatak credited her staff with making the summer feeding program possible, including cafeteria workers Judy Selenchik, Robbi Blodgett, and Kathy Steiner.

Popatak also thanked school resource officer Michael Mason for his assistance in the summer feeding program, from heavy lifting to transporting goods between school buildings.

Selenchik said the different school districts were able to pick up food along different schedules according to their need, such as how one school district may come daily while another district may come every two days.

Blodgett added that the West Middlesex students who eat at the school have appreciated getting a variety of meals, similar to the variety incorporated into a school-year menu.

"The kids seem to really enjoy it," Blodgett said.

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