Plano dishes out free lunches all summer

12:00 AM CDT on Sunday, June 15, 2008
By CHRIS COATS / Special Contributor to The Dallas Morning News

Jim Mergen stood at the end of a cafeteria line handing out cartons of milk to a crowd of mostly children walking by with trays of food. He did a quick line count.

Last week, the city of Plano kicked off its Summer Lunch Program, where kids up to 18 years of age can eat for free. Mr. Mergen, recreation superintendent, oversees the program, which operates out of the Williams High School cafeteria.

Last year, the program dished out more than 17,000 meals, prepared by Plano school district cafeteria employees. Now in its 15th year, the program started from the city's desire to provide lunches for youths, Mr. Mergen said.

The food and staff are provided by the Plano school district. But the district is reimbursed by the city, which receives funding for the program from the Texas Department of Agriculture's summer nutrition program, Mr. Mergen said. The program is open to the public.

"Plano cares about kids," said Karen Johnson, director of the Plano Boys & Girls Club, which brings over 150 kids daily. "Kids would be going hungry without this program."

Kids with and without parents come from Plano and other areas. Even though lunchtime is 11:30 a.m., customers line up thirty minutes early.

Some see the program as a need, but others see it as a fun summertime outing.

"We'll go swimming or to the library first," said Chinh Ngo of Richardson, who came with her children and friends. "We come every year. The kids get so excited to come."

Kenneth Bentley, recreational coordinator at adjoining Williams Recreation Center, is a big-brother figure to many of the kids. He provides crafts, board games, and plenty of pickup games of kickball and basketball.

"A lot of these kids can't afford to go to summer camps," he said. "We're not only feeding them but getting ones who are alone or parked in front of a TV out of the house."

The lunch bunch will also be entertained during the summer with puppet shows, jugglers, magicians, and clowns. But the big draw is the cafeteria chow. Joel Bethke, 9, of Plano recommends the pizza sticks and gelatin dessert.

On Wednesday, Quynh-Anh Dang, 9, polished off her chili dog.

"The food is awesome," she said. "I could eat here every day."

Mr. Bentley believes good food makes happy taste "buds."

"This program is instilling a sense of community and bringing people together," he said. "It's kids meeting and making buddies. It just so happens to start at a cafeteria."