Lauren Polman is using food pantries, the MPS free lunch program and whatever other resources she can tap to make sure her five children are safe and fed these days.
Her oldest is in 12th grade; her youngest is a toddler. The single mother said she does get paid time off from her job, and doesn’t receive any government assistance, but she’s stretched by the demands of coronavirus.
“Parents plan to feed their children three meals a day during spring and winter break,” said Polman. “We didn’t prepare for this; we didn’t have time to prepare for it.”
Polman has been going to the North Division meal program and a food pantry to “bridge the gap.”
“It’s not a time to panic,” she said. “It’s time to utilize the resources that are still provided to us.”
Polman said her children aren’t used to being inside so often so she is trying her best to keep them busy using homework packets provided by the school.
“It depends on the rate that they do the work,” she said. “But I don’t think the packets will last until April like they are supposed to.”
There’s also the question of access.
“I have to rotate the kids on the computer,” she said. “It’s four of them and we only have one computer so I try to make them share.”
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