WCA’s Farm-to-School Program has had a successful year! Here are a few updates:
For the 23-24 school year, we have served 38,644 breakfast meals and 143,277 lunch meals!
85% of our meals are made from scratch!
One of our parent volunteers, Jenny Whittington, worked with our Food Services Department to write a grant for new equipment for the elementary school kitchen. We were awarded $34,914 for a new bakery-sized commercial oven! Thank you, Jenny, for the time and energy you spent helping us write a successful grant!
Corinne Hoyman spent time creating plant starters for our organic garden! Thank you, Corinne, for your hard work and dedication to our garden!
We have been operating a small bakery in our elementary school kitchen! We utilize expert bakers who work as contractors during our kitchen staff's off hours. This allows for flexibility with our baking schedule and consistency in product between both schools. By operating in this manner, we keep food costs low and food quality high!
Supporting our Farm-to-School Program
The state agency overseeing the free meal program in our schools did not anticipate the number of students who would participate. Unfortunately, funds to support our Farm-to-School Program were reduced from $34,000 to $7,500. Our organic garden will help offset some of these losses, as will future procurement of grants and donations. Please donate here to help continue our mission of feeding students clean, delicious, and nutritious scratch-made meals!
If you are interested in donating equipment to help support our organic garden, we need the following items:
New 2x8 beds: $160, plus the cost of wood
Crop protection: $780
Harrow: $350
Insulage fork: $74
Wheeled Cart: $256
T-Posts: Several needed
T-Post pounder: $40
Stirrup hoe: $28
Compost: $450
Foliar spray: $60
Bagged soil: $80
Plant clips: $15
Seeds: $150
Perimeter fencing: $1,500
6-8 compost bins: $600
Worm bin: $100
Backpack sprayer: $150
Venturi fertilizer injector: $50
Seed starting:
Rolling classroom unit: $800
Lights: $400 to $600
Cart:$100
Germination mat:$80
Trays and covers: $120
Portable greenhouse: $2,000
If you have any questions about making a donation, please reach out to Jeannine Davison, Director of Food Services. We appreciate your support!