Feeding students with Gilford Got Lunch

GILFORD — Sitting down at the table to have breakfast or lunch seems simple enough for most people. We don’t think twice about grabbing a meal or snack any time we wish, and we don’t worry whether there's enough food in the house. 

That is not the case for some families in the Lakes Region. Gilford Got Lunch has a simple goal: to provide healthy and nutritious breakfasts and lunches to school-aged children within the Gilford School District on weekends and school vacations who may otherwise go hungry. Over the summer, Gilford Got Lunch served 66 children within 29 families.

Gilford Got Lunch was started in 2013 when resident Thom Francouer saw the need. He was joined by Meg Jenkins, who is the school nurse at Gilford High School. Jenkins pours time and energy into the Gilford Got Lunch program and is aware of the children who can benefit from consistent meals.

“Thom said I was a good person to help with Gilford Got Lunch,” Jenkins said. 

Gilford Got Lunch is organized at the Gilford Community Church and helped by the Gilford Youth Center. Volunteers fulfill a number of duties, from picking up food at the NH Food Bank to packing the food once it arrives in Gilford and delivering it to families on a specific route. It is all done confidentially to respect the privacy of families who sign up for deliveries.

Jenkins said those in need often find themselves in situations of peril due to a number of factors, including housing insecurities with increasingly high rents and rising food prices being the major reasons.

“I would say that over 100 students in the Gilford School system are food insecure,” said Jenkins.

Once school starts in the fall, many people assume Gilford Got Lunch ceases operation until the next spring/summer.

That is not the case and the program runs year round, Jenkins said. During the year, school vacations can present a challenge for families. In spite of household food shortages, parents must feed their children breakfast, lunch and dinner. When school is in session, school breakfast and lunch programs lessen the burden. That is why Gilford Got Lunch offers help during the school year as well as in the summer.

Gilford Got Lunch also focuses on nutrition. Jenkins said proteins, fruits and vegetables are primarily missing from the daily diets of children. 

“We work hard to bring a healthy balance to the meals we deliver," she said. "We also provide low sodium foods and whole grain cereals, for example.”

Jenkins credits local farms with donating vegetables and fruits. The agricultural effort is coordinated by Aaron Lichtenberg of Winnipesaukee Woods Farm.

“We are helped by the Children’s Auction. The Gilford Community Church provides support and did 34 backpacks [with supplies for students] during back-to-school season,” Jenkins said.

Once the seasons roll around again and summer vacation is on the horizon, those who want to help can go to gilfordgotlunch.com to sign up.

“We will always take donations of food or cash,” Jenkins said.