RICHMOND, Va. — With Richmond Public School closed for two weeks due to the COVID-19, school officials have set up meal distribution centers, so students still have access to meals.
In a message to families, Superintendent Jason Kamras said the meal distribution centers will be located at more than a dozen schools in the city.
RPS families can go to any center, regardless of their home school.
• Armstrong HS
• Binford MS
• Blackwell ES
• Boushall MS
• Broad Rock ES
• Brown MS
• Chimborazo ES
• Fisher ES
• Francis ES
• Ginter Park ES
• Greene ES
• Henderson MS
• Huguenot HS
• Mason ES
• Miles Jones ES
• MLK MS
• Oak Grove – Bellemeade ES
• Reid ES
• Summer Hill PS
Kamras said families can pick up multiple meals so that they don’t have to come back every day.
The centers will be open 9:30 am – 12:30 pm, Monday through Friday.
“We recognize that some families may have difficulty getting to these centers,” Kamras wrote. “As a result, we are working on a limited neighborhood distribution strategy, but need a bit more time to work through the details.”
Kamras also answered several other questions regarding the school closure in the letter to families.
Chesterfield Food Bank has set aside special hours to help feed students.
Breakfast and lunch items for children will be ready to be picked up on Tuesdays and Thursdays from 4 p.m. through 6:30 p.m. at the food bank’s Chesterfield location at 12211 Iron Bridge Road.
Food pick-up will be a drive-through distribution that will begin on Tuesday, March 17.
“Volunteers to pack for this distribution are welcome on Mondays and Wednesdays between the hours of 10 a.m. until 12 p.m., and volunteers will be welcome during the special children’s food distribution to help us serve on Tuesdays and Thursdays,” said Kim Hill, CEO and Director of Chesterfield Food Bank.
Feed More food bank on Rhoadmiller Street are in need of volunteers in light of the coronavirus outbreak.
“We have a great deal of corporate volunteers and they too, out of an abundance of caution, are working from home and ceasing their volunteer activities,” Feed More CEO Doug Pick said. “We are keeping groups to under 20 so they don’t have to worry about getting in a large group to volunteer.”
On Friday, some staff members stepped into volunteer rolls. Christy Dalton, a community events manager at Feed Moore, helped bag juice boxes for Meals on Wheels.
“It’s definitely unnerving, but we are practicing the best protocols to make sure we are allowing people to social distance while they’re volunteering,” Dalton stated. “Everybody is worried about a lot of stuff. We don’t want these people to worry about where they’re getting their food from.”
Pick said students and families who take home food from their weekend and after school programs should seek out their
“It will happen a lot like in the summer when schools close,” Pick explained. “So, we have summer feeding sites and people utilize our agencies and pantries more.”
Feed More advised families to inquire about services on their website.
