Posted by Theresa Tanner on 5/3/2024
Nutrition Service workers are essential members of our schools’ staff, serving 29,000 meals per day to make sure that students can focus on learning and participating in school activities.
For School Lunch Hero Day, we wanted to learn more from some great members of our staff!
Lainey Watson, Wilson Elementary School Kitchen Manager (above)
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED IN NUTRITION SERVICES? I started working for Nutrition Services back in 2011.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB? Having the honor and opportunity to get to know my students who come in for breakfast and lunch. I love greeting them with a smile and chatting with them, hearing about their weekend, pets, or vacation, siblings, etc.. as they come through my line, while providing them with a nutritious meal to help fuel them for learning throughout their day. Just knowing that I can provide a safe place for them to come in and eat is awesome. My own kids are grown adults now, so getting to see my Wilson kiddos brings a smile to my face and makes my heart happy!
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE THING TO COOK, EITHER AT WORK OR HOME? My favorite thing to cook at school is the Mac and Cheese because it’s one of the kid’s favorites and I like seeing their faces light up with excitement. At home, I love to cook just about everything whether it’s a curry dish, a strata or quiche, or just grilling a good ol’ rib eye in the summer!
WHAT DO YOU WISH THE COMMUNITY KNEW ABOUT WHAT YOU DO? I guess I wish the community knew how hard my colleagues and I work at our job, and that feeding the kids is not as easy as it may sound. I sometimes feel as though we get dismissed by people. That our job isn’t very important and “Oh, you’re just a ‘lunch lady.’” I think some people are often surprised when I tell them a little more about the details of what my job consists of daily, especially when they find out that I work alone in my kitchen. At our job, we need to be detail oriented, organized, be able to multitask, good with time management, have good people skills and communication, computer skills, ordering the food, and so much more! I also would want them to know that I have the children’s best interest at heart, and I care about them. That’s why I like doing the job I do!
Erika Myers, Scott Elementary School Kitchen Manager
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED IN NUTRITION SERVICES? I have worked in Nutrition Services for 7 years.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB? What I love most about my job is that I get to make delicious food for the kiddos to help them grow and learn!
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE THING TO COOK, EITHER AT WORK OR HOME? My favorite thing to cook is pot roast! This is my family’s favorite meal!
WHAT DO YOU WISH THE COMMUNITY KNEW ABOUT WHAT YOU DO? I wish that the community knew how hard we work to provide healthy, delicious food for the kiddos. We come in early to make sure we can feed them breakfast to start their day off right and lunch to keep them going throughout the day. I love to see the kids smiling, laughing, and having fun at breakfast and lunch.
Angela Noble, Indian Trail Elementary School Kitchen Manager
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED IN NUTRITION SERVICES? I have spent 13 years in Nutrition Services for SPS.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB? The thing I love most about my job is the kids! I love seeing them twice a day, sometimes more. I love to cook and bake at home and to see the kids enjoying their food. It makes me happy.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE THING TO COOK, EITHER AT WORK OR HOME? I love to cook and bake but anything Italian is my favorite to cook for my family.
WHAT DO YOU WISH THE COMMUNITY KNEW ABOUT WHAT YOU DO? That my coworkers and I at Nutrition Services make good quality food everyday for some pretty amazing kids and sometimes staff! I want anyone to be able to come to me with their questions about our food because I would love to educate anyone that will listen. We "lunch workers" have a reputation have serving not-so-great food but I want everyone to know, kids and parents, it is just not true.
Krystal Hakes, Peperzak Middle School Kitchen Manager
HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED IN NUTRITION SERVICES? I have worked in school nutrition services for 12 years, nine of them with Spokane Public Schools.
WHAT DO YOU LOVE MOST ABOUT YOUR JOB? Putting a smile on the kids faces and knowing in some small way we can improve their day.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE THING TO COOK, EITHER AT WORK OR HOME? At work, it would be the buffalo mac and cheese. The kids get so excited for it! At home I love to bake.
WHAT DO YOU WISH THE COMMUNITY KNEW ABOUT WHAT YOU DO? That for most of us this is more than just a job. We put our whole hearts and care into it as if every kid we’re feeding was our own.
