Parent Teacher Magazine Gaston County Schools Nov/Dec 2015

Cafeteria manager adores serving children North Belmont Elementary cafeteria manager adores serving children KIDS’ TICKETS $10 Ages 2-12. ExcludesTotal Access, Front Row and Gold Circle seating. No double discounts. All tickets $2 more day of show. JAN. 8 Fri. 7:30 PM JAN.9 Sat. 2:00 PM Sat. 7:30 PM TIME WARNER CABLE ARENA Buy ticketsat Ticketmaster.com, RetailLocations Time Warner Cable Arena Box Ofﬁce or call 1-800-745-3000 © 2015 Feld Motor Sports, Inc. 232715 Competitors shown are subject to change. 8 • Nov/Dec 2015 • Parent Teacher Magazine Each morning at 6:15, Cindy Lee arrives at North Belmont Elementary to begin preparations for the school’s breakfast. As cafeteria manager, it’s her responsibility to make sure mealtime runs smoothly. Every school day, Lee and her staff serve 180 breakfasts and 365 lunches. But for Lee, the job is about much more than just filling the appropriate number of trays. Each meal represents a chance for service and an opportunity to take care of the children she knows by name. “I love coming in and preparing meals,” Lee said. “I don’t let anybody go without a meal in this school. I don’t care if it’s a child, parent, teacher, whoever. We make sure whoever comes through our cafeteria and serving line gets a well-balanced, healthy meal.” During National School Lunch Week (October 12-16), Lee “exemplifies all the best qualities” of a cafeteria manager, said Frank Fields, director of school nutrition. “She genuinely cares about the children she and her staff serve,” Fields said. “We are fortunate to have her.” Lee started working for Gaston County Schools 15 years ago in the cafeteria of Southwest Middle School. She always wanted to open a restaurant and saw an opportunity to do that by becoming a cafeteria manager, she recalled: “If I get my own school, I’m going to run it as if it’s my business.” For the last three years, she’s been able to do that at North Belmont. “I call the students my customers,” she said. “I ask my team to please treat every child as if they’re our customer.” Lee’s students are more than just customers, though. She makes a point to learn the students’ names. If they happen to forget their lunch number when they come through the serving line, she can look it up and enter it for them: “That way it doesn’t embarrass them,” she explained. “She’s always willing to do what’s right for the children. That’s what’s first for her,” said principal Ryan Smith. Smith pointed to new programs that Lee has helped bring to North Belmont. The school is now taking part in a fruit and vegetable snack program that provides fresh produce to every class three days a week. Lee and her team also provide after-school snacks for participants in the Girls on the Run program. “She’s always prepared to go above and beyond to make sure the children are fed appropriately,” said Joann Curvin, school nutrition area coordinator. “Her primary concern is serving the children. She adores serving them.” Her focus on serving others is evident at the end of lunchtime when she can be found in the kitchen packing up leftovers. Rather than throw the food away, she donates it to a local church that uses it to feed the homeless. Lee said one of the best things about her work is knowing that North Belmont is part of the Community Eligibility Program (CEP), which allows every child in the school to receive free breakfasts and lunches. “I know every student here will get to eat whether mom and dad have money or not,” Lee said. We salute our school nutrition employees! Cindy Lee is just one of the many outstanding school nutrition employees we have in Gaston County Schools. During National School Lunch Week, we salute each one of them for the work they do to provide healthy meals in our school cafeterias. Thank you for your service to the children of Gaston County Schools.

Parent Teacher Magazine Gaston County Schools Nov/Dec 2015 | Page 10