ECS provides meals to students

After the State of Alabama decided to shut all K-12 schools down, Enterprise City Schools made the decision to provide meals for children in the community during that time.

ECS began serving breakfast and lunch to children in the Enterprise area – between the age of one and 18 – on March 19 and in just the first four days of the program served 2,948 meals.

“It’s been going extremely well so far,” Enterprise Superintendent Greg Faught said of the meal program. “Our (Child Nutrition Program) staff has been unbelievable over the last week in getting these meals prepared and shipped to the different locations. Our CNP staff is outstanding.”

Enterprise’s CNP staff is delivering meals daily – Monday through Friday – at various pickup locations across the city. Faught said that it’s important to he and his staff to make sure that ECS children are provided with meals during this shutdown but also it gives the staff a chance to see them, as well.

“It’s extremely important to make sure they are provided for should they need something,” he emphasized. “It’s also a great way for us to stay connected with our students and get a chance to see some of them.”

Faught said that the added benefit of members of the ECS faculty joining in on the deliveries is that students see how much their teachers and members of the staff care about them.

“I think it means a lot to the children to the parents that are taking advantage of the program,” Faught said. “They’ve all been very, very grateful. It’s just been a great spirit among our staff, our coaches, our teachers, our support staff and our administrators. People are showing up to help and that’s just a good feeling.”

Faught said that he couldn’t be more proud of the way his faculty and staff have stepped up to help during this program, too.

“I’m extraordinarily proud of them,” Faught said. “This is not unlike some other situations we’ve been in before. It’s very difficult in that we don’t really have control here.

“We’re just doing the best we can to be here for our students and community and I’m very, very proud of our staff.”

ECS will resume providing meals to children in the community on April 6 with multiple meals being given to each child on Mondays and Wednesdays.

Instead of providing the meals Monday through Friday, instead two breakfasts and two lunches will be given to each child on Mondays and three breakfasts and three lunches to each child on Wednesdays.

Families will be given the opportunity to drive thru or walk up and pick up meals for the children in the family from ages 1-18 at each location.

Curbside meals will be served from 11 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. at Coppinville School of Opportuniy (Old Coppinville), Pinedale Elementary and Rucker Blvd. Elementary.

A bus or van will be on hand at the rest of the locations to hand out meals. From 11 a.m. until 11:25 a.m. meals will be available at Faith Community Church and Pine Tree/Endale Estates. From 11 a.m. until 11:30 a.m. meals will be available at Dixie Drive Apartments and College Street Elementary. From 11:40 a.m. until noon meals will be available at Colony Drive Apartments and Nance Circle Homes.

Per the USDA’s regulations, children must be present in order for meals to be provided and this program is solely for pick-up of meals only, no meals can be consumed on site.