School Celebrates Covered Lunch Area

THOUSAND OAKS —  Los Cerritos Intermediate School students will soon have shelter from the rain, and picnic tables where they can sit and eat lunch.

The school hosted a ribbon-cutting ceremony Friday to celebrate its new lunch area, which is expected to be completed by spring. Although Los Cerritos is 23 years old, it has never had a covered lunch area for students, Principal Pat Pelletier said.

“They haven’t had tables either, which makes it difficult to eat lunch,” she said.

There were benches where kids could eat, but only enough for 250 of the school’s 880 students.

And when it rained the students would use the multipurpose room, but it only holds a third of the pupils.

“So we’d have to have a three-lunch schedule, which was disruptive to the educational process because of having to shuffle the class schedules around,” Pelletier said.

School officials plan to build two more lunch areas as soon as they collect enough money to do so.

The Parent-Teacher Assn. has donated $6,000 to date and has pledged $4,000 more by the end of the year. Associated Student Body funds, and proceeds from students selling magazines, wrapping paper, soda and chocolate have also contributed to the effort.

Families or businesses can contribute $500, the cost of each lunch table, and have their name displayed on a plaque. For more information, contact Pelletier at 497-9511, Ext. 208.