Hopkins Public Schools’ Summer Food Program will soon be hitting the road—in a good way.

Thanks to a $25,000 grant from Second Harvest Heartland, the district has purchased a food truck that will allow the program to take hot lunches to different neighborhoods, said Barb Mechura, the district’s director of food and nutrition services.

The Summer Food Program is currently located at facilities tied to three schools whose areas include large numbers of students receiving free and reduced lunch, a common measure of poverty.

But not all the students who could benefit the program live near those schools. The food truck will take hot lunches to other “pockets of poverty” that don’t fall in the areas already served, such as a the area around Smetana Road that’s in Gatewood Elementary’s boundaries.

The food truck is currently in the shop being readied for action. The district aims to have the work complete by July 9 and put it into action by the end of July. Schedules and locations will be available to let neighbors know when it will arrive.

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Summer Food Program

Hopkins’ Summer Food Program is already available at three locations around the community. All children under the age of 18 are eligible for free meals, regardless of whether they qualify for free and reduced lunch. Adults who accompany a child may purchase a meal for $2.

Eisenhower Elementary Cafeteria 1001 Hwy 7, Hopkins

• Dates: Monday-Friday, June 14-August 17
• Time: 12:30-1:15 p.m.
• Ages: 0-18 years old 

43 Hoops Academy 1002 - 2nd Street NE, Hopkins

• Dates: Monday-Friday, June 18-August 17
• Time: 11:00 a.m. -1:00 p.m.
• Ages: 0-18 years old

Katherine Curren Building 1600 Main Street, Hopkins

• Dates: Monday-Friday, June 18-July 20
• Time: 12:30-1:15 p.m.
• Ages: 0-18 years old

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