What started with dozens of high school students visiting a West Sacramento farm last month ended with a Thanksgiving turkey and stuffing lunch today for more than 4,000 Natomas Unified elementary school students.
The District’s traditional holiday meal for kids became part of a much larger educational and community service experience for a select group of students from all three NUSD high schools – Inderkum, Natomas and Discovery.
We’ll get to that part later, but first, let’s cut to the chase – was the holiday meal of turkey, whole grain stuffing, roasted butternut squash and pears a hit with the District’s young diners?
Thumbs up, from all five kids interviewed at Bannon Creek elementary.
“It’s good,” said Asia, 7, who was too busy eating to elaborate, but stopped long enough to give her lunch plate a letter grade: “A.”
“I like it,” said Nevaeh, a 3rd grader.
“It has a really nice flavor,” added Alex, 8.
Nayeli, 8, said she liked the stuffing best and noted that the holiday meal is particularly special to her. “I never have turkey or stuffing before Thanksgiving – only on Thanksgiving,” she said.
Nutrition Services Coordinator Vince Caguin said the foundation for today’s holiday meal was laid weeks ago, when the District took 42 high school students – most of them culinary arts enthusiasts – on a tour of Vierra Farms in West Sacramento.
At the working farm, teenagers participated in a “mock harvest” of produce and were given the chance to help package butternut squash. Some of the teens also pitched in that day to help plan NUSD’s Thanksgiving menu.
Fast forward to earlier this week.
Seven Discovery High culinary arts students came to Natomas Unified’s central kitchen Tuesday to help cut and cook the squash and turkey needed for today’s holiday meal – 55 turkeys, by the way, weighing 25 to 30 pounds apiece.
Besides making the holiday meal educational for high school students and tasty for youngsters, NUSD’s Nutrition Services Department organized it as part of the California Thursdays program in which meat and produce for cafeteria meals is bought fresh from local or California farms.
Nutrition Services Coordinator Vince Caguin said today’s turkey meal enhances his own holiday spirit. “We have a lot of great local food accessible here in Natomas, and we have a lot of great people who cook and make food,” he said. “So this is an opportunity to give back to students.”
