D202, Aramark Give Away 1.2 Million Free Meals Amid Pandemic

PLAINFIELD, IL — Plainfield School District 202, along with its food service provider Aramark, have served more than 1.2 million free meals since school buildings shut down in spring amid the coronavirus pandemic.

As of Thursday, they had distributed 1,236,617 meals, said Tamara Castaneda, Aramark General Manager for the Central Region.

"We never imagined that we would serve over a million meals," she said. "I am very proud of the team and the partnership we have with the district."

D202 and Aramark give out a free week’s worth of breakfast and lunches Thursdays at eight different schools. The meals are paid for through the Summer Food Program run by the United State Department of Agriculture, said Assistant Superintendent for Business and Operations Tony Arbogast.

The free meals will be offered through June 30.

Arbogast said these meals also help families who may struggle to put food on their table during the pandemic.

"That means that over 1 million times, someone did not worry about where their next meal for their child would come from or over a million times a student did not log into their class hungry," he said.

Visit http://www.psd202.org/announcements/5892 for details on how to get free meals.