Changes to be to LaPorte school lunches due to new Lunch Committee

There has been a long stigma against school lunches since they’ve often been cardboard pizza and mystery meat. Sophomore Brayden Sobecki decided to take things into his own hands and created the Lunch Committee. 

Lunch Committee was created with the idea that school lunches should be fresher and should have more options available. Sobecki wants there to be more options for students with food restrictions such as vegetarians, gluten intolerances, and lactose intolerances. He also feels like there should be more food provided.

Sobecki started to take his own lunch in the middle of his 8th grade year because he didn’t like the quality of the food that was being provided. From that point on, Sobecki began jotting down different ideas that could be used to improve the school lunch program. It was that year that COVID-19 hit the school, and his ideas had to be put on hold. 

He tried to start up the club last year, but it didn’t gain enough traction. This year, however, he has more than enough people to begin working. He partnered again with FFA when he announced the meeting, which is what he attributes to the large turnout at the Lunch Committee meeting, and the meetings were publicized over the announcements. 

Though there haven’t been any changes made in the past, Sobecki has big plans for the future due to Lunch Committee, and he plans to start implementing changes in the lunchroom by the end of the school year. 

“I really want to start by seeing what Food Service wants. I want to get someone from Food Service in there and tell me what their constraints are, and what they would want to see changed. Then we can build our plan around that. I think we can also get some grants from places around the community, such as the Healthcare Foundation. I also want to partner with orchards. There’s a lot of things, but I need to put it all together,”  Sobecki said.

Sobecki already has his foot in the door with the Healthcare Foundation due to family ties, and he hopes that once changes start being made in the lunchroom, he’ll be able to reach out to different foundations. 

He believes in what a team a small group of students can do.

“A lot of students think that adults have to make changes, but I want them to know that change happens one person at a time. If we get the support of adults, and this catches on, we can keep going,” Sobecki said. 

Mrs. Tuholski, the sponsor of Lunch Committee and a FFA co-sponsor, believes that FFA and Lunch Committee would be able to work together since there is a new greenhouse for the LaPorte Middle School Campus. She also mentioned that New Prairie’s director of food services has utilized local meals.

Lunch Committee meetings can be found in Mrs. Tuholski’s class, room F.16, on Tuesdays during SRT, and Sobecki can be contacted at his school email of [email protected]