Tireless Employees Keep Students Fed In and Out of School

By the time the first students arrive at school in LaRue County, the Food Service employees have already been hard at work preparing breakfast.

“They work tirelessly to ensure that students go to class ready to learn,” Director of School Nutrition Stephanie Utley said of these employees.

Day in and day out, thousands of students and several hundred staff across LaRue County reap the benefits of the LCS Food Service Department.

“Immediately after the breakfast service they begin to work on lunch for the students and the staff who choose to dine with us,” Utley said. On a normal day, they will provide breakfast, lunch, and snacks to students and staff.

This is no small task. Utley reported that “during the 2023-2024 school year, we served the students of LaRue County 239,579 breakfasts and 319,390 lunches.” With more than 22 million children across the nation who struggle with food insecurity, the work of preparing and serving food is more crucial than ever.

LCS Food Service workers understand this, which is why their work doesn’t stop when the school year ends. Currently, they are also serving 450 meals a day through the H.A.W.K. Meals program.

“The H.A.W.K. Meals program has been going better than we could have expected,” Utley said. “We are serving around 450 meals a day at our five sites, which include our mobile route and our site at LaRue County High School. We want to make sure the community knows how thankful we are for their support and the best parts of our day are seeing their smiling faces.”

The H.A.W.K. Meals program runs from June 3 to July 26, and helps feed children within the community who wouldn’t otherwise be guaranteed a meal outside of the school year. Utley thinks that the program is going even better than expected, adding that “the community has been so supportive and embracing to our program.”

As for the workers who organize deliveries, prepare meals, and serve the children of LaRue County schools, they don’t seem to be slowing any time soon.

“They’re the hardest working people I have ever met,” Utley said.