Pocatello/Chubbuck School District preparing for summer food service program

With the end of the academic year approaching, the Pocatello/Chubbuck School District is beginning to prepare for its annual food service program.

For the 19th year, the district will provide free meals, one daily, to children under the age of 19.

Since the program began, the district has gone from feeding less than 10,000 people in one park to close to 100,000 in eight locations.

District food services coordinator, Tom Wilson, said that the program grew steadily at first, but has been serving eight locations for the past several years.

“That seems to be really good because we get all areas of the town, out from Ross Park all the way over to Bicentennial,” he explained.

Wilson feels that there is a “dire need” for this program and sees the benefits of it each year.

“If we can maintain numbers over 75,000, you’ve gotta think, that’s 75,000 meals in that summer, that means that someone probably didn’t go hungry that week,” Wilson said. “And that’s what really warms your heart.”

The program has changed the menu this year to offer some “superhero-themed items” such as “Guardians of the Galaxy Pizza” and “Hulk Burgers.”

This year, meals will be served at Alameda Park, Bicentennial Park, Caldwell Park, Hawthorne Park, New Horizon Center (from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.), OK Ward Park, Raymond Park and Lower Ross Park, starting on Monday, June 5.

The meals will be available Monday through Friday, from 11:30 a.m. until 12:30 p.m. in all locations aside from the New Horizon Center.