Shared meals for some can fill both mental as well as physical hunger which is why St. Andrew’s Episcopal School was the second high school in the nation to become a Campus Kitchen site.

Meals provide comfort for the present and hope for the coming day. Nearly 25% of the Washington, D.C. community is food insecure. Lack of food causes incredible anxiety. These are some of the reasons why the St. Andrew’s community is one of forty five colleges and universities and one of only three high schools in the United States that are participants in The Campus Kitchen Project.

If the secret to good food is the good ingredients and attention that it is prepared with, than Bethesda Cares and Carroll House serve some of the best food in the world. Each week, St. Andrew’s students contribute hot meals for 100-125 people every week. Each Wednesday, students at St. Andrew’s gather in our school kitchen to prepare meals and 50 bagged lunches using recovered, donated and purchased items. On Thursday, the meals are delivered and our 8th graders serve the food on-site.

Last year, 599 student and adult volunteers provided over 1,965 hours of volunteer service to meet the challenge of making over 4,966 nutritious meals. Each Thursday, we depend on the generous commitment of parent volunteers to deliver the meals that students prepare. Each week, a team of six student leaders supervise the meal preparation.

St. Andrew’s depends on the generous donation of food from Manna Inc., Marriott Corporation, Roger’s Produce and From the Farmer. Parents also donate gift cards so that students can purchase fresh produce during the winter. St. Andrew’s recovers nearly 9,000 pounds of food annually that would otherwise go to waste.

Like meals around a kitchen table, St. Andrew’s Campus Kitchen Project helps Bethesda Cares and Carroll House provide the intentional setting for conversation, camaraderie and nourishment. We are all fed by the experience.