SAINT PAUL, Minn. — School districts are now unveiling plans to make sure no student goes hungry while schools are closed.
Starting Wednesday morning Saint Paul Public Schools will start delivering meals.
“We are utilizing our bus stops to hand out meal boxes to our families,” director of nutrition services Stacy Koppen says.
Each box contains five lunches and five breakfasts.
Koppen says the boxes are made to feed one child for an entire week.
“There are sandwiches, apples, other lunch meals and some breakfast items,” Koppen says.
The district is planning to delivery 9,000 boxes this week.
The boxes will be dropped off either Wednesday, Thursday, or Friday.
Koppen says families should check the school district’s website to find your drop-off site and your drop-off time.
“Doing it over three days will ensure that we can get to every family in need,” Koppen says.
At Lakeville schools they're doing a similar delivery service.
Other districts like Osseo, St. Louis Park, Robbinsdale, and others are doing grab-and-go systems.
With those systems families will need to pick up meals at various pickup sites.
Food shelves are also chipping in to help.
"We are hearing reports from our partners that they are seeing double the volume they normally would," Second Harvest Heartland CEO Allison O’Toole says.
Workers are worried they may soon run out of food if the demand doesn’t stop.
"I think this is an unprecedented crisis," O’Toole says.
So, they're asking Minnesotans to step up.
Blue Cross Blue Shield has donated $250,000 to keep food shelves stocked with food.
O'Toole says the company will match all donations up to $500,000 this week.
"We are asking this community to step up in a way that matches how unprecedented this crisis is," O’Toole says.
KARE 11 is also joining the cause to keep food shelves stocked with food.
Visit KARE11.com/give11 to donate to the Second Harvest Heartland food drive.
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