As busy, hardworking individuals, high school students need all the time and help they can get to complete assignments and get through the day. Because of how fixated students can get on their own issues, it is important to remember to properly thank the heroes in their lives who provide the nourishment and energy required to function daily. Thankfully, the lunch ladies are aware of the students’ needs and recognize how much they can actually eat. 

“Pizza and taco days are the favorites. Also when I have the bosco sticks, which are the mozzarella cheese filled sticks, I have to cook a lot more on those days because those go like crazy.” Andrea Frazier, one of the prep ladies on the staff said. “I’m too busy, I can’t stay up there and say you already had a lunch so I just leave it up to the students. You know, these are high schoolers, hungry boys.”

Brenda Hohman, another of the prep ladies considers herself very lucky because her team works together and gets along, which can be invaluable in the workplace.

 “I couldn’t ask for a better team to be quite honest, we have great ladies and we all work great together.” Hohman said. “It’s a great staff, great teamwork we got going on, so you know everybody’s so kind and nice.”

Just like last year, all students get free breakfast and lunch, with the exception of the packaging being slightly different. Additionally, the lunch ladies unfortunately do not get to pick what food they buy; instead, the county’s program uses the same menu.

“They set out a menu usually a month ahead of time and then we order a week prior,” Rebecca Dudley, who does prep work and cooking said. “Unless we don’t have it then we can choose.” 

On the off occasion that a certain food item does run out, there are always other options so that later lunches can still eat. Sometimes new food will show up during lunch, like the buffalo chicken wings that were only available once.

“The chocolate benefit bars are probably one of the favorite breakfast food items, and sometimes they’re in the grab and go too,” Frazier said. “And the buffalo chicken, we had those, they were a big hit, but they are not on the menu, those were accidental. They just showed up in my freezer off the truck and I thought well let’s cook ’em and serve ’em and they were a big hit. Unfortunately I can’t get ’em anymore.”

The lunch crew also expressed their indifference to students repeatedly entering the lunch lines for more food. 

“As long as I know how much [food to cook], we account for that, it doesn’t bother me at all, some managers it might, some managers it might not,” Dudley said. “As long as we make enough, that’s all that matters.”