TULSA, Okla. — The Tulsa Dream Center has partnered with the Tulsa Public School District to feed students despite schools being closed in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID-19.
The Tulsa Dream Center has launched a free-meal delivery program so no student with out transportation goes hungry.
TPS launched a free 'Grab and Go' meal program for kids on Monday. While this program will help hundreds of kids through out the district, some families are not able to meet at the designated locations.
“A lot of boys and girls in our community with parents that don’t have the transportation to get to the schools, a lot of our boys and girls walk to school everyday," Tim Newton, Tulsa Dream Center Program Director said.
Last week, Newton worked with TPS Superintendent Dr. Deborah Gist to create a joint program which will help feed kids who do not have transportation to the 'Grab and Go' sites.
“That’s the great thing about Tulsa," Newton said. "When struggles come and when tough times come, we all band together and we truly are in this together."
TPS staff drop off bulk food items at the Tulsa Dream Center, and volunteers assemble meals to later deliver to children.
Isabella Freitas is one of the 100 volunteers a part of the program which operates in the Tulsa Dream Center gym.
“I was just sitting in my house feeling so comfortable with everything I needed but then I thought about how so many people do not have everything they need right now," Freitas said. "So I decided it was time to get out of my comfort zone and help people."
After teams sort and pack meals with breakfast and lunch food for kids, a second group drives the packed meals right to kid's doorstep.
“Bringing the food to their door and just giving them a smile and some hope it means a lot," Gabe Masterson, a delivery volunteer, said. "We want the students to feel that we are here for them even if the schools aren’t open but as a community we want them to be fed also."
It's an effort that volunteers say will continue as long as schools are closed due to COVID-19. On Monday, volunteers packed and delivered 800 meals. On Tuesday they packed and delivered over 1000.
“They need hope and they need help so that’s why we are here," Masterson said.
To make sure families have one less worry during this time.
“We can do little things for each other," Freitas said. "This is something little we can do to do our part.”
To volunteer or ask for assistance, contact The Tulsa Dream Center on the Facebook pageor call 918-430-9984.
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