Libby district adopts new meal delivery schedule

In an effort to mitigate the possible spread of COVID-19, Libby Public Schools officials condensed meal distribution trips to three days a week.

Buses bearing foodstuffs for school children circulate the school district on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. A grab-and-go option for parents is available at the Libby Elementary School, Libby Middle High School and Libby Central School between 11:15 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. those same days, officials said.

Students will receive four meals on Mondays and Wednesdays, two breakfasts and two lunches, said Superintendent Craig Barringer. On Friday, students will receive one meal. There will be no delivery on April 10 as it is a scheduled holiday.

The backpack program, which distributes food gathered by the Libby Food Bank to children of low-income families, will continue as before.

“We’re trying to do as much as we can [to maintain] social distancing and by cutting it down a couple of days, we’re trying to eliminate some of the interactions between staff,” Barringer said.

Getting food to children who normally depend on school meals for nutrition emerged as one of the early logistical hurdles as classrooms emptied in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. In Libby, where about 52 percent of the student population is eligible for free or reduced-price meals, buses were pressed back into service as resupply vehicles.

On March 18, just days after Gov. Steve Bullock ordered public schools shuttered, Libby educators and administrative staff distributed 286 meals.

Barringer said the condensed schedule hopefully would take pressure off of the district’s kitchen staff as well. Those workers are “spread pretty thin,” he said.

District staff are preparing, packaging and labeling the meals in an assembly line fashion, he said. Volunteers then board the buses and hand out the food. Some volunteer every day and others take shifts as their schedules allow, Barringer said.

Many enjoy seeing how the children are faring, he said.

“It just gives our staff an opportunity to get out there and check in on the kids and see how they’re doing,” Barringer said. “They are fairly quick stops, but [the students] see a familiar face and it gives us a chance to check in on them.”

District officials said the buses should arrive roughly four hours after the time they would normally pick up students for the school day. They ask that those receiving the meals be at their usual bus stop and ensure they are visible to the drivers.

Meals are available for free to any children in the district under the age of 18, including siblings of students. Those with questions regarding the meal program are encouraged to call the district at 406-293-8811.