Grab-and-go locations offer free meals for kids; some offer adult meals for a low price
Monday will be a quiet day at schools across Oregon—but one of schools’ most vital resources will continue to be available.
On Thursday night, Gov. Kate Brown ordered all Oregon schools to close as of Monday, March 16, and to remain closed through March 31 due to concerns around COVID-19. That left many concerned about where the decision would leave students who depended on safety nets that public schools provide, such as school breakfast and lunch programs.
School districts around Central Oregon announced as early as Friday that they would open Grab-and-Go locations where young people 18 and under can access meals, similar to summer lunch programming. Some districts also announced prices for adult meals. Bend-La Pine Schools, for example, mentioned a $4 charge for adults who wish to access the Grab-and-Go stations.
Grab-and-go meals are available on the days when school was scheduled to be in session. (Spring break in BLPS, Jefferson Count and Redmond schools, for example, starts March 23, during which time no meals are planned to be offered.)
Below are Central Oregon’s Grab-and-Go Lunch pick-up locations:
Bend-La Pine Schools Meal Locations
Ensworth Elementary School 2150 NE Dagget Lane, Bend 10:30-11:30 am.
Sky View Middle School 63555 18th Street, Bend 10:30-11:30 am
Bend Senior High School 230 NE 6th 10:30-11:30 am
Elk Meadow Elementary School 60880 Brookswood Blvd., Bend 10:30-11:30 am
La Pine High School 51633 Coach Road, La Pine 10:30-11:30 am
Visitors are asked to enter through designated doors, pick up a meal from the cafeteria and then take the meal to go. Bend-La Pine Schools custodial staff will be cleaning before and after each meal. Adults can purchase a meal for $4.
Redmond Public Schools Meal Locations
Children ages 18 and under can receive one free prepackaged breakfast and lunch at Redmond High School from the hours of 9 am to 10:30 am. Food distribution will occur in the school visitor parking lot.
Meal distribution dates and time are as follows:
March 16 – March 20: 9 am to 10:30 am.
March 23 – 28: SPRING BREAK | No Food Distribution
March 30 & 31: 9 am to 10:30 am.
No identification will be required to receive a meal. Attendees will receive one bag per child under the age of 18.
Sisters Schools Meal Location
Jefferson County Schools Meal Locations
Bridges High School: Meals served in the parking lot M
Metolius: Meals served in the bus dropoff area
Warm Springs: K-8: Meals served at the curb next to the bus dropoff
Meals: March 16-20, March 30-31
Breakfast 7:30 am-8:30 am, Lunch 11 am-11:45 am
By: Nicole Vulcan; Source Weekly on March 15, 2020
The group, which operates local restaurants Life & Time, Vida Y Tacos and Mavericks Country Bar & Grill, will host breakfast at their Vida Y Tacos location on the Westside this Tuesday. Additional locations and meal dates will be announced soon.
In response to statewide school closures due to coronavirus, local Bend restaurant group, Spin the Kitchen, is stepping in to offer students and community members in need with a free hot breakfast of pancakes, eggs, bacon and fruit at their Vida Y Tacos location on the Westside this Tuesday, March 17 starting at 8:00 am.
The free breakfast event aims to offer assistance to households impacted by the two-week school shutdown, as well as raise awareness and rally support for those in our community who rely on free or reduced-cost meals provided by the school district to feed their children. In addition to an individual breakfast, guests may also take an extra meal to deliver to a family or other children who do not have transportation.
“As a parent of school-aged children myself, I share in the community’s concern for students and families throughout Deschutes County who are in need of meal assistance during school closures” said Garrett Wales, Owner of Life & Time and Vida Y Tacos on Bend’s Westside.
“It’s our hope that Tuesday’s free breakfast can help alleviate the burden of wondering where a meal may come from that day, as well as shine a light on the need for more support around this important issue. We’re all in this together and our team is working hard to find ways to expand meal assistance over the coming days.”
While the event’s primary objective is to assist school-aged children, it is also open to any community member in need who would benefit from a free breakfast on Tuesday. The breakfast will operate on the honor system, meaning no form of proof or ID will be required to participate, but community members are asked to use good judgement and integrity when accepting this assistance.
All Spin the Kitchen restaurants, including Tuesday’s free breakfast location at Vida Y Tacos, have been taking extra steps to combat the virus and maintain a safe dining environment for customers and staff. In addition to deep cleaning and sanitizing each restaurant every night, measures include sanitizing all hard surfaces and guest interaction points like door handles, bathrooms and countertops as frequent as every 30 minutes, as well as sanitizing credit card machines after each use.
WHO: – Children who are in need of meal assistance during school closures – Community members in need due to coronavirus impact.
WHEN: Tuesday, March 17th, 8:00-10:00am* Additional locations and dates will be announced soon on the Vida Y Tacos and Life & Time Instagram pages.
WHERE: Vida Y Tacos (320 SW Century Dr Suite #410, Bend, OR 97702) Located in shared parking lot at the Safeway on Century Drive.
By: KTVZ on March 15, 2020.