With summer over, our cherished cherubs are returning to school. Many parents will wait with anticipation and anxiety until the happy bus arrives to pick up their offspring. As the bus pulls away, they’ll jump up in the air, click their heels, and breathe a sigh of relief for the peace and quiet they’ll enjoy until the afternoon! Life is good.

How many of you know when the national initiative of the school lunch program came into being? At the end of the 19th Century, laws had been signed in 34 of the 45 states for compulsory education. The industrial revolution had added to social inequality and poverty was highlighted by the number of children who lacked nutritious meals.

Boston and Philadelphia were the first two major cities to institute school lunch programs, offering meals for only a penny! There was marked improvement in the student population’s performance. Other localities copied this trend until in the 1930’s, during the Great Depression, the federal government became involved and by 1941 school lunch programs were operating in all states. Congress passed the National School Lunch Act which was signed into law on June 4, 1946, by President Harry S. Truman.

Many of my generation will remember the food pyramid which provided guidance of what food groups we should consume and how much of each food group should be consumed on a daily basis to achieve a healthy body and mind.

In my childhood, school lunch menus were published in local newspapers for each school. Students could plan ahead and if a particular lunch was not to their liking, they could brown bag it.

On a side note, in elementary school, I began only wanting to take my lunch and not eat what was on the menu. This continued for some time till my mother finally coaxed out of me the reason. One day, prior to my brown bagging it obsession, a fellow student had dropped his tray on their way to a table, and the entire lunchroom erupted into laughter! I decided I wouldn’t take the chance for ridicule and began bringing my own lunch. I’ve since learned that one can laugh along with everyone and share in the humor.

So here are some lunch menus published in the Evening News from 1961 for our local schools. Interestingly, Leptondale Elementary did not open until 1962, and was not listed until later. I included this for alumni of my school district.

I know most of you have stories about favorite episodes in the cafeteria while you were in school. I’m part of a group, consisting of fellow classmates from the Wallkill Class of 1968, which meets monthly to reminisce and break bread. This was the concept of a wonderful classmate who has sadly departed. Over the years, we would occasionally meet up with one another. Tony began getting us together and the group grew. We assumed the name ROMEO’s (Retired Old Men Eating Out) as it was only the guys, but as the news spread, the ladies joined in and the name was modified to ROWMEO’s (I guess you know what the “W” stands for).