Food Services and Wellness Update
January 2021
Happy New Year! Free meal boxes start up again Wednesday, Jan. 6
Hello, families and hello 2021! Here in the Central Kitchen of Bellingham Public Schools we are so proud to package up convenient school meals every week in the BPS meal box. While we hope to return as soon as we can to preparing most of your meals in a scratch-cooked way as we did before the pandemic, please know that we keep that vision of the Good Food Project alive in our hearts. As you can see in the photos below, everything we do is still "made with love."
This week during the distribution, we will be piloting a Food Recovery Program, in partnership with Sustainable Connections. Read more below in this newsletter. Bring any unwanted, shelf-stable items you are not using back to one of the 15 school locations. Your unwanted cans and food products will find a new home.
As we have in weeks past, we encourage all families to pick up a free box of 14 meals and support our Food Services Program and the Good Food Project. Boxes are distributed from 4 to 5:30 p.m. every Wednesday at 15 school locations and six community locations.
Thank you for continued support during these challenging times. Eat well, study hard, exercise and stay safe and we'll see you back in school cafeterias soon.
Chefs Patrick Durgan and Mataio Gillis
Photos below: This week Food Services staff prepared vegetarian chili as one of the scratch-made entrées that will be distributed and Common Threads volunteers helped with post-winter break meal boxes
Food Recovery Program begins in partnership with Sustainable Connections
When you arrive in the meal box line, let the staff on hand know you have food for the Food Recovery Program. They will direct you to the drop-off box. School sites only.
Reminder: the health attestation is an important safety step for in-person instruction
Parents/guardians, are you interested in a free QPR training on suicide prevention?
Question Persuade Refer (QPR) Suicide Prevention Training
This free online course, offered through Bellingham Public Schools, is for anyone interested in learning how to respond to and support someone who is suicidal. The training is taken at your own pace and typically takes one hour to complete. In this course, you will learn the common causes of suicidal behavior, the warning signs of suicide, and how to get help for someone in crisis. Participants will learn how to question, persuade and refer someone who may be suicidal, and how to get help for themselves or learn more about preventing suicide. Learn more about QPR online.
According the QPR institute website, the world is familiar with CPR. Similarly, QPR is an emergency mental health intervention for suicidal persons. An abbreviation for Question, Persuade, and Refer, the intent is to identify and interrupt the crisis and direct that person to proper care. If you are interested in participating, click this link to request a direct link and password via email.
If you or someone in your family needs support for safety and/or mental health, please reach out to your school counselors or access the resources listed below.
How to contact someone for support; mental health and suicide prevention resources
If you or your child would like to talk to someone about how to manage stress, anxiety and routines, please use one of these avenues:
- Call your child’s school and ask to connect with the counselor, or call the Family Resource Center at 360-676-6456.
- Fill out the Bellingham Public Schools request form and select “I would like a school counselor to contact me” (or your child).
There is also a list of mental health and wellness resources online on the district website.
Suicide is preventable and you don't have to be a professional to support someone who might be hurting. You can call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 24 hours a day, seven days a week, at 800-273-8255. Press 1 for the Veterans Helpline. If you’re under 21, you can ask to talk to a peer at Teen Link at 1-866-TEENLINK between the hours of 6-10 pm or (206) 461-3210 during regular business hours. Don’t feel like talking on the phone? You can start a text conversation with the Crisis Text Line by sending “HEAL” to 741741.
Beyond the Birds and the Bees: information night on sexual health education will be offered at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 18, 2021
Initiative 90 did not change anything about our curriculum in Bellingham Public Schools. In our schools, policy and procedure 2125 govern sexual health education. We offer parents and guardians an opportunity to review materials to be used in our classroom; after which they may choose to exclude their child from sexual health education instruction. Fifth grade curriculum can be reviewed here. For grades 6 to 8, we use the KNOW curriculum, available here. High school health classes use the FLASH curriculum, with information available here.
This school year, we will share some information in a virtual setting at 7 p.m. on Thursday, Feb. 18. You may send questions in about this information after viewing the short presentation. Send questions to angela.ritchey@bellinghamschools.org.
School playgrounds open; safety reminders
With elementary schools coming back in-person at some grades, playgrounds can only be used outside of school hours.
Thank you for following these safety precautions:
- Wear a mask at all times;
- Practice social distancing;
- Rotate through if the playground has too many children on it; and
- Wash hands before and after use.
The Food Services team won the 2020 One Schoolhouse Award in December. View video below.
Food Services Program
Email: patrick.durgan@bellinghamschools.org
Website: bellinghamschools.org/food-services
Location: 2005 Alpine Way, Bellingham, WA, USA
Phone: 360-676-6504
Wellness Program
Email: jessica.sankey@bellinghamschools.org
Website: bellinghamschools.org/wellness
Phone: 360-676-6400