Centennial School District launches summer lunch bus

From Delco to Chesco and Montco to Bucks, what about life in Philly’s suburbs do you want WHYY News to cover? Let us know!

Centennial School District is launching a mobile lunch bus to provide free meals to the district’s children during the summer months.

The program provides free, nutritious meals to children aged 18 and younger. All meals must be consumed onsite to comply with guidelines.

“This is just an all-around way to make sure that the district kids have a meal throughout the day at least once, and just to give back to our community,” said Christopher Sanchez-Peralta, communications coordinator at the district.

In the 2025-2026 school year, more than half of the district’s students participated in the free meals program.

Sanchez-Peralta said summer meal service programs can have a big impact on the community.

“It’s just really important to make sure that local children have access to some form of nutrition throughout the summer,” he said. “Even if it’s just at least once a day for 30 minutes, it can go a long way for the community as a whole.”

Centennial School District’s food and nutrition manager, Lori Deni, was “inspired” by nearby Bensalem Township School District’s summer lunch program, Sanchez-Peralta said.

Bensalem started its summer lunch service program 13 years ago and introduced its own summer lunch buses in 2021.

It’s especially important in a district that qualifies for free meals for all students, said Jenna Demirjian, food services coordinator at Bensalem.

“In the summer months, when children aren’t in school, they may not have access to healthy foods to eat, so this program is a great opportunity for the kids to be able to get a free breakfast and a free lunch every day,” she said.

Last summer, the district served more than 31,000 meals through its summer meal programs.

Demirjian said food insecurity is rising in the district, with some families who previously received benefits through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program no longer qualifying because of cuts included in the “One Big Beautiful Bill.”

“It’s really unfortunate that we’re seeing those numbers drop, and it’s really scary because I fear that we are going to lose the program for [Community Eligibility Provision], which is free meals for everybody, and we know it’s not because there isn’t a need,” she said. “We know it’s because these programs are just more difficult to access for the people who need it, and that’s really unfortunate.”

Demirjian applauded Centennial’s new initiative.

“It really feels good … that we impacted another school district to be able to continue this kind of work and affect more children, that’s the goal, is to feed children who need it,” she said.

Bensalem’s school district has six sites and two mobile buses serving meals throughout the summer. More information can be found on its website.

The Centennial School District lunch bus will stop at the following sites at the designated times, Monday through Friday, June 15 – August 21:

McDonald Elementary
666 Reeves Lane, Warminster
Breakfast: 8:30-9:30 a.m.
Lunch: 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

The Glen at Bucks
675 E. Street Road, Warminster
Noon-12:30 p.m.

Maple Street Park
525 Maple Ave., Warminster
11:20-11:50 a.m.

Szymanek Park
200 E. Street Road, Warminster
11:20-11:50 a.m.

Crooked Billet Park
25 Van Horn Drive, Warminster
Noon-12:30 p.m.

Aspen Grove Apartments
120 E. Street Road, Warminster
12:40-1:20 p.m.