La Feria ISD Celebrates National School Lunch Week

Updated: November 1, 2024

By Mike Villarreal

During the week of October 14-18, schools across the nation celebrated National School Lunch Week. This is an opportunity to recognize and appreciate the delicious and nutritious meals that play a crucial role in providing the energy and nourishment our students need on a daily basis.

At the La Feria Independent School District, there is a strong emphasis on acknowledging and celebrating the hard work of the cafeteria staff. The district recognizes the vital role that healthy eating plays in facilitating optimal learning and growth for the students. This year, the cafeteria staff went all out with a Pirate Treasure theme. Dressed as pirates, they not only served meals to the children but also engaged them in a fun and interactive snack taste-testing activity. This creative approach not only made the mealtime enjoyable for the kids but also instilled the importance of nutritious eating habits in a memorable way.

In 1946, President Harry Truman initiated the National School Lunch Act, a significant step towards providing low-cost or free lunches to low-income children in the United States. We acknowledge and appreciate this government support.
President John F. Kennedy started National School Lunch Week in 1962 to highlight the vital role of healthy school lunches and their impact on children in school.

Nutritious meals are pivotal in teaching children the first steps to living healthy lives. They significantly impact their learning and growth, shaping the health of today’s and tomorrow’s generations.
Our commitment to end child hunger is particularly significant during National School Lunch Week. We reaffirm our dedication to doing everything possible to ensure no child goes to bed hungry.
Our school nutrition personnel, who plan and prepare nutritious school meals daily, serve more than 30 million students nutritious school meals daily.

These programs help provide free or reduced-priced school meals to families that would otherwise be unable to afford them.
These healthy school lunches fuel our students, which allows them to focus better in the classroom and be ready for success in their daily school activities.

This year, the Thrifty Food Plan was modernized for the first time since 1975. This plan makes a healthy diet affordable for families with the Supplemental Nutrition Acceptance Program.
These strategies are part of a plan to reduce and end hunger-related diseases by 2030. This plan also aims to expand access to free and healthy school meals to more than nine million more kids.

During this week, we recognize the importance of school lunches to kids and families, and we can expand our commitment to free and healthy school lunches.

This is also a time to appreciate all of the school leaders, educators, school staff, and nutrition specialists who are constantly working to provide healthy food to nourish our leaders of tomorrow.

Photos from the La Feria ISD Facebook Page