Schools closed March 13, but the kitchen of Bridgeport Middle School has remained open, preparing pickup lunches for students.

Manning the kitchen, beginning at 6 a.m. Monday through Friday, are BMS Cafeteria Manager Deanna Saliga and Johnson Elementary Cafeteria Manager Teresa Lewis. BMS is the designated school lunch site for Bridgeport schools. Any school students, age 18 or under, can swing by and pick up a healthy lunch.

 

“It is for the community – as long as you are under the age of 18 and a student,” Saliga said. You can go to St. Mary’s or Heritage Christian; it doesn’t matter.”

 

On the first day of the program, the women fed 20 students. Daily, those numbers have climbed. Tuesday, 229 students picked up sack lunches.

 

The menu varies from day to day, but a healthy lunch is always served.

 

“We still have to meet the guidelines in the respect there has to be a protein, grain and fruit/vegetable offered,” Saliga said.

 

All food items are provided through the school system. The cooks are trying to use food items which had already been stocked in the kitchen.

“We want to be able to offer something hot at least a couple times a week,” Saliga said. “One day, we had chicken legs and they got a bag of chips, along with carrots and dip.”

 

Another day, students may receive deli sandwiches, applesauce cups and celery sticks.

 

“There’s no set menu and schools aren’t all offering the same thing,” Saliga said.

 

Cafeteria managers from all Harrison County schools are involved in the county-wide program, staffing a kitchen of a Harrison County school. Because the program has grown so much, a few additional cooks have been called out to help and two new sites are being added, Saliga said.

 

Although cooks don’t know how many are going to show up on any given day, they’ve been able to feed every student who arrives for a meal.

 

“And what we don’t use one day, we use another,” Saliga said. “There is no waste.”

 

Starting today, lunches can be picked up at BMS from 10 a.m. through 12 noon. Assisted by some Johnson Elementary staff members, Saliga and Lewis will provide curbside service starting today. Up until today, outdoors walk-up service was offered.

 

“Things change daily. This is new and everyone is doing the best they can,” Saliga said. “As of right now, the program will go on throughout next week for sure. Whether we serve 50 or 300, we’re still going to be here.”

 

The effort hasn’t gone unnoticed.

 

“People have really been appreciative,” Saliga said. “It’s a very big undertaking and the county has really never done anything like this before. Every day there are meetings about it as we try to find the best way to handle it.”