Even though it’s officially closed, Lexington Park Elementary School is a busy place this summer. The school is the location of a free lunch program four days a week this summer. And a number of community partners are providing special programs for the attendee.
Anyone 18 years or younger is eligible for the free lunch that is served from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m. Monday through Thursday except for the week of July 4th when it is open Tuesday through Friday. And through financial assistance from several partners in the program, a adult who comes with the child will also get a free meal.
Monies for the free lunch come from a federal grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture. A grant from the state through the Judy Center Program is funding security. Judy Centers are named after Judy Hoyer, the late wife of Rep. Steny Hoyer. Judy was an early childhood educator in Prince George’s County.
The Judy Center in St. Mary’s County provides a variety of services throughout the year to the St. Mary’s County Public Schools, according to Kelly Hall, director of elementary schools. Wendy Biekley, director of the local Judy Center, is supervising the Lexington Park Elementary School summer program. Anyone seeking more information about the program can call 301-863-4068.
With lunch the children also are getting a variety of programs offered by a number of community partners. They include the Lexington Park Library, St. Mary’s County Department of Recreation and Parks, University of Maryland Extension,, St. Mary’s Hospital Health Connections and the St. Mary’s County Sheriff’s Office. A Jazzercise class will be held a couple of times this summer.
On a recent Thursday, Jane Kostenko, a nutritionist with the University of Maryland Cooperative Extension Service, was getting prepared to give some nutrition tips to the lunch attendees. That day lunch consisted of a choice of a hamburger or pizza, milk, juice, dessert and other options.
Mike Jones, the school system’s supervisor of Food and Nutrition Services, explained the program this week to the St. Mary’s County Board of Education. Jones said the program started the week of June 20 with about 50 attendees and has been building ever since. He said the program is geared for 200 lunches but if more start showing up they will be able to handle the numbers under the federal grant.
The program was enthusiastically received by the school board. Board member Mary Washington called the program “wonderful” and said it was a much needed extension of the free and reduced price meals served during the school year.
In a separate item, the school board approved a five-cent increase in lunch prices during the next school year to bring the system in compliance with federal regulations that require parity with the monies the system receives from the federal government for the free lunches served.
