By Kelly Doran
Sun staff

Williamsburg Local School District is making improvements to food service after receiving two grants recently.

Superintendent Matthew Earley announced to the Williamsburg Board of Education on Jan. 12 that the school received two grants, one to put in a new serving line at the elementary school and one to buy equipment that will allow the high school to reopen Cat’s Den.

The serving line was badly needed, as the current serving line is original to the elementary school, so it is more than 50 years old, said Kimberly Gregory, food service director.

She applied for the National School Lunch Equipment Grant from the National School Lunch Program on Oct. 30, 2014, and heard from the Ohio Department of Education on Dec. 29.

“It’s a definite need and will be a welcomed piece of equipment for that building,” Gregory said.

She requested $20,000 but has not received her official award letter so she is still unsure what the exact amount of the grant will be, Gregory said.

The other grant is a Fuel Up to Play 60 Grant through the American Dairy Association Mideast, Gregory said. The grant was for $4,000. Gregory applied for on Oct. 31, 2014 and heard back on Dec. 23.

Gregory used that grant to buy a refrigerated merchandising cooler and a warming/holding cabinet for the Cat’s Den. The Cat’s Den reopened Jan. 13 after being closed for about five years, Gregory said.

“The students were very excited to see the additional choices. We got a lot of good feedback,” Gregory said.

Cat’s Den offers six additional meal choices that all come with fruit, fresh vegetables and milk: chicken salad on croissants or ciabatta, ham and cheese wraps, turkey bacon cheese wraps, chef salads with grilled chicken, peanut butter lunch, pretzel and cheese and nachos and cheese, Gregory said.

All of those “meal deals” come with the required components to meet a reimbursable meal through the National School Lunch Program, Gregory said.

This is the first time that food services has been awarded a grant in the 12 years that Gregory has worked there, she said.