Community Development Recreation, in conjunction with Mayor Edward M. Lambert, Jr.'s office sponsored a Summer Food Service Program in eight of the city's parks over the summer of 2007. The program is administered nationally by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and within Massachusetts by the Department of Education. The program was established to ensure that children in needy areas could continue to receive nutritious meals during the summer months that are comparable to those served under the national School Lunch Program. Free lunch is available to children 18 and younger Monday through Friday through August 31st, 2007. Programs operate in North, Griffin, Lafayette, Abbott Court, Kennedy, Maplewood and Pulaski Parks as well as Father Diaferio Village, and the Doran, Kuss and Henry Lord Middle School sites. Rain sites are also designated for the parks at nearby schools. Activities, including heart-healthy games for children, are organized between 10:00 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. by staff provided by CD-Rec. Click here to see pictures from last year's program and here for pictures of the 2005 program. For further information about CD-Recreation programs log onto their web site at www.cdrec.org or contact CD-REC at 508-679-0522 or Executive Director Grace Gerling by e-mail.
 

(Top row, left) CD-Rec staffer B.J. McDonald hands out a lunch, which includes milk and fruit along with a sandwich, at the North Park lunch program. (Top row, center) Nine-year-old Mariah Greigo and her sister Ashlee receive their lunch from B.J. (Top row, right) Four-year-old Arijanna Allard picks up her lunch. (Middle and bottom row, left) Four-year-old Jacob Graves tries out the corkscrew slide at the North Park playground. (Middle and bottom row, right) Five-year-old Paula Jeannne French goes down the corkscrew pole. (Bottom row, center) Two-year-old Justin Dimand enjoys his sandwich with his mom, Lynn, and his sister Tiffany, 13, and her friend Arijanna.