It’s no secret the school cafeteria, located in the 1960’s middle school building is old; yet this space, which has adapted to the easily forgotten times of plastic bagged sandwiches and deep fried processed French fries, now produces up to 300 delicious meals every school day made mostly from scratch and with locally produced fresh food products… like it used to be when so many of us older folks now considering the school bond used to enjoy at school.

Like our school as a whole, the cafeteria is making the best of a difficult situation. Because it does, it prompts the belief that we don’t need refurbished buildings to produce a quality end result. That’s true. Because the cafeteria employs an incredibly efficient, dedicated staff who devote themselves to the health of our children, they succeed in their tasks.

That’s exactly what the entire staff and administration of our K-12 campus does… they succeed in their tasks in spite of their surroundings. Does this mean our school lunches and academic achievements would decline if they were housed in safer, cleaner, healthier, more efficient buildings? That seems to be what some people believe. “I taught in 100-year-old buildings and our kids turned out okay” is a familiar mantra and it’s true. Our kids are turning out okay, too! But I’m betting that those 100-year-old buildings were better built and maintained by adequate and regular bonds.

Of course I want our kitchen staff to be given energy efficient refrigeration and freezers, more space to prep and serve fresh organic foods from our local farms, equipment that isn’t jury-rigged to last one more school year, and a space to efficiently move around during the fevered pitch of the lunch hour. And, if you take that very thoughtful step to check off YES for the school bond, you can rest assured our staff and kids will continue to excel and produce excellence.

Madie Murray

Chair

Orcas Island Farm to Cafeteria Program