HAMPDEN/WILBRAHAM – Many families rely on schools to offer breakfast and lunch during the school year. During the state-wide mandated closure of schools prompted by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Hampden-Wilbraham Regional School District (HWRSD) is making sure those families can still rely on them.

The district began a meal pick-up program on March 25. Meals are distributed via car-line at Minnechaug Regional High School. Roughly 150 students receive both breakfast and lunch for two days on Mondays and three days on Wednesdays, said Julie Dougle, school nutrition director for the district.

The window to pick up the meals runs from 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. The district had been using a two-hour window from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m., but after the first couple of days of service, the hours were curtailed to match the need.

 Dougle said the district is working with vendors to ensure that the meals include the same nutritional value as they do while school is in session, which means including milk, vegetables and whole grains. She said some vendors have faced challenges switching to packaged items because so many schools are requesting them suddenly.

 While Dougle was unsure whether the district would continue the meal program during the previously-scheduled April vacation week, she said she believes they will.

The families picking up meals have included a mix of students who regularly receive free or reduced lunch and those students the district doesn't normally serve.
Until recently, Dougle said, the district was funding the program, which was not eligible for reimbursement from the state because less than half of the district’s students qualify for free and reduced lunches. The estimated cost for the meals distributed between March 25 and the originally-scheduled end of the closure on April 7 was about $40,000.

 At the end of March, however, the 50 percent requirement was waived.

 “All districts, regardless of their status, will be reimbursed,” Dougle told Reminder Publishing. The reimbursement rate is generally $3 for lunches and $1.75 per breakfast.