Highland Helps

With all the uncertainty and changes that students and families have undergone over the past few weeks, Salt Lake School District officials wanted to ensure that empty stomachs was not something students should have to worry about. For that reason, Highland, along with other schools around Utah, is now doubling as a drive-through restaurant.  

Though school is not in session due to the outbreak of COVID-19, students are still in need of the food they would normally be getting from the school every day. Thankfully, the district has been able to continue the distribution of school breakfast and lunch to students and families who need it.  

Cars line up at Highland at 11:00 a.m. every day for lunch. Great sanitary precautions have been made as they do not allow people to get out of their vehicle to get the food. The people working will go to a car, ask how many lunches are needed, and then give out that amount of lunches on a tray. No contact is made between the workers and the people getting lunches. 

Tonya Slaughter is one of the people who have been distributing food at Highland. She explained that the food distribution has gone well, but last-minute changes have been made and more will probably ensue as to make the process safer and smoother.  

The precautions made are “Just for safety, for all of us working too” Slaughter said. “We just want to eliminate the spread so hopefully we can all just get back to normal, quicker. This is something we have never seen or experienced before. I think it’s just important that we try and take care of each other and help each other out.” 

Slaughter explained that she and the rest of her co-workers are at the school Monday through Friday like a regular school week would be. The food distribution was continued even over spring break and should last through what would be the end of the school year. Great effort has been put in by the workers and a few volunteers, all with smiling faces.  

Although the process has gone extremely well and a lot of people are coming, there are still those who don’t have ways of transportation to get to Highland. Because of this, there are people volunteering to come pick up food from Highland and do food deliveries. What was left of the Highland food pantry has also been distributed to cars coming by and to the food deliveries.  

The district reported that nearly 60,000 meals are being served a week, illustrating just how much of a need continued food service truly is in the Salt Lake area.  

Good safety measures have been made, so many people have jumped in to help, and cafeteria workers are still working hard to make great food for students and families to bring home.  

“Everyone come to lunch!” Said Slaughter laughing, “Keep us working!”