Jennifer Williams and T.J. Orszulak get a “grab and go” meal from Damar Jones at the Westfield Boys and Girls Club. (MARC ST. ONGE/THE WESTFIELD NEWS)
WESTFIELD – The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Westfield continues to provide free meals to city youth and is once again expanding its offerings.
In addition to giving out cold more than 350 “Grab & Go” dinners on weekdays, the Club is now giving out hot meals two nights a week as well as breakfast and lunch for the weekend.
Chief Advancement Officer Bo Sullivan said they tested out a hot meal last week with much success.
“Beth in our kitchen decided we should do hot meals,” Sullivan said. “So, we tried hot dogs and people loved it.”
Hot meals will be offered on Tuesdays and Thursdays at all meal locations. A monthly menu is posted at bgcwestfield.org, but is subject to change without notice. Free meals are offered Monday-Friday from 4:30-6:30 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club, 28 West Silver St., and from 5-6 p.m. at Edgewood Apartments, Powdermill Village Apartments, Colonial Pine Acres and Franklin Avenue Elementary School.
This week, the Club offered pasta with meatballs and green beans on Tuesday and will have hot ham and cheese sandwiches Thursday. Sullivan said participants seemed very appreciative of the hot meal.
“People were happy to have that hot meal,” he said. “It’s something different.”
The Club is also handing out weekend meals on Friday evenings.
“There will be two breakfasts and two lunches,” Sullivan said. “Breakfast will be cereal, juice and fruit and lunch will be a sandwich, snack and drink.”
The Club is serving more than 350 meals daily, Sullivan said. Funding for the meal program is provided by a grant from the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. Sullivan said it is an expansion if the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Westfield’s summer meal program, which he said will likely kick-in once the current meal program ends June 29. Any youth age 2-18 is eligible for the meals. No proof of residency or age is required, and children do not need to be present to pick up the meals.
The Club is offering meals to enhance the free meal program of the Westfield Public Schools, which offers grab and go lunch and breakfast weekdays from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. at the Westfield Middle School and Abner Gibbs Elementary School, and 11:30 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. at Colonial Pines and Powdermill apartments. Meals will be served through June 29.
