Who doesn’t love a free lunch? Apparently most of the children who eat at the Lawton Public Schools Summer Feeding Program do, and their parents enjoy the convenience and cost savings.
LPS Child Nutrition Services is serving breakfast and/or lunch at six schools this month and at nine other sites across Lawton to those aged 18 and under. The schedule will change slightly in July.
One of the more popular sites for kids to grab a quick meal is Elmer Thomas Park. That is where Clinton Jackson, 7, and his mom, Alicia, were recently. Alicia Jackson said she and her son come to the park about 11 a.m. almost every day because meals are served starting at 11:30 a.m.
“It helps a lot,” she said of the meals. “I don’t have to worry about going to McDonald’s and getting him something. This is better than fast food.”
Pizza, green beans and pears are on the menu on Mondays, but Clinton said his favorite meal is corn dogs. After a quick lunch, Clinton and his mom were heading back to the splash pad.
LPS staff prepare to feed about 100 kids each day at the park. The first Monday the meals were served, they served about 20 kids in the first 30 minutes. One of those was Treyvion Frazier, 2, who was eating a slice of pizza.
His mom, Brittny Allen-Frazier, said she learned about the free meals from the LPS website and also from her two other children, who attend LPS.
“It’s free, why not?” she said. “Groceries are so expensive. This helps a lot,” Allen-Frazier said.
Janice Craig, who was at the park with her 6-year-old son Baker, likes the convenience of the meals because it’s less she has to pack for a day at the park and splash pad. She said her sister-in-law and her children also frequent the park and they often eat together.
“We are both stay-at-home moms. We like to get the kids out and be active,” Craig said.
The feeding sites are selected based on where children congregate, and one of those places is St. John’s Missionary Baptist Church, 1504 SW NH Jones Avenue. This is the second year the church has been an LPS summer feeding site. The church also serves meals to the community five days a week, and Harold Davis said the summer feeding site is a welcome addition to the work the church does.
“It saves money,” Davis said. He said the church served about 250 meals a day the week before the summer feeding site opened. Once LPS began serving, about 50 kids took advantage of those meals.
“We have a lot of kids coming in we don’t have to worry about feeding,” he said. “Food is not cheap. Kids from all over the community come because for this area, we are it.”
Bebe Middlebrooks is one of those taking advantage of the meals served at St. John’s, even though she doesn’t live in the area. She said she gets meals, including breakfast, from LPS for her five children almost every day.
“I’m grateful. I’m glad they did this,” she said. “Families struggle to get meals. And it gets us out of the house.”
Brenda Jackson, who works with LPS Child Nutrition Services, said she sees the need in the community and usually serves almost all of the 50 meals she brings to St. John’s each day.
“When finances get low, they come in,” she said. “I go to church in this area and I see a lot of people walking down the street who benefit from this.”
Visit the LPS website at https://www.lawtonps.org/ for the list of feeding sites.
BOX
FEEDING SITES
Meals Monday through Thursday unless otherwise noted
DATES:
JUNE 3-26; JUNE 30-JULY 24 (No meals available June 19 or July 4)
BREAKFAST: Served 8-9 a.m.
SITES:
June only unless otherwise noted
Cleveland Elementary School, 1202 SW 27th Street
Life Ready Center, 702 NW Homestead
Pat Henry Elementary School, 1401 NW Bessie
MacArthur High School, 4400 E. Gore
Central Middle School, 1201 Fort Sill Blvd. (Monday through Friday, June and July)
LUNCH: Served 11:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
June only unless otherwise noted
Cleveland Elementary School, 1202 SW 27th Street
Life Ready Center, 702 NW Homestead
Pat Henry Elementary School, 1401 NW Bessie (June and July. No breakfast in July)
Central Middle School, 1201 Fort Sill Blvd. (Monday through Friday, June and July)
MacArthur High School, 4400 E. Gore
Edison Elementary School, 5801 NW Columbia (Monday through Friday, June and July)
SACK LUNCH
Elmer Thomas Park, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Patterson Center, No. 4 NE Arlington, 11-11:15 a.m.
Owens Multipurpose Center, 1405 SW 11th Street, 11:30-11:45 a.m.
HC King Center, 1705 NW 20th Street, noon-12:15 p.m.
Kay Dee Daycare, 2206 W. Lee, 11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Kids and Kompany, 1619 N. Sheridan, 11:45-12:15 p.m.
Wonder Kids, 6401 W. Gore, 11:45 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Barnett Chapel, 3416 SW Overland Drive, 11-11:30 a.m.
St. John’s Missionary, 1504 NH Jones, 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.
Lawton Community Theatre, 1316 NW Bell, 12:30-1 p.m. (July 7-18)
Grace Fellowship, 5333 NW Liberty, 11-11:30 p.m. (July 22-25)
For information, call the LPS Child Nutrition Office, 580-355-1150. Visit the LPS website at https://www.lawtonps.org/ for any changes made throughout the summer.