Cumberland schools lunch lady advocates for child nutrition

Ten years ago, Christina Osborne took a job as a temporary worker in the cafeteria at Stedman Elementary to be near her children, who were students there.

Osborne discovered she liked the challenge of preparing food for hundreds of children every day, and of seeking out recipes for good-tasting, healthy meals that can draw kids away from pre-packaged snack chips and processed foods.

Now Osborne is a cafeteria manager for the Cumberland County schools, where she oversees the kitchen staff preparing and serving the food. At age 39, she is in her second year of pursuing a four-year college degree in business to advance her career with the school system. This past week Osborne went to Washington on a national School Nutrition Foundation fellowship to advocate for child nutrition programs.

She also is president-elect of the Cumberland County School Nutrition Association.

“I never thought I would be lunch lady — for certain,” Osborne said Friday. “But as I watched managers ahead of me, and supervisors, I thought, ‘You know what? I could do that. That’s something that I could definitely do.’”

So Osborne stuck with it and worked her way up.

For the past four years, Osborne was the cafeteria manager at Elizabeth Cashwell Elementary School on Legion Road. Starting Monday, she will take over the kitchens at New Century International Middle School and New Century International Elementary School, a promotion.

A modern lunch lady doesn’t serve sloppy joes made of yesterday’s meatloaf, as portrayed in Adam Sandler’s “Lunch Lady Land” song, or the reheated salisbury steaks.

But Sandler’s song also says school food is served with “a little slice of love.” Osborne described how she and the staff strive to do that.

They watch what the children like and dislike. Working with the school system, Osborne said, they put together recipes and meal plans designed to appeal to children from all cultural backgrounds in their schools.

Some of the lunch entrees: Italian grilled cheese sandwiches, Hawaiian chicken wraps and chicken tender salads, along with the traditional cheeseburgers, pizzas and chicken fillets.

During school open hours, the kitchen staff shows off the foods it serves.

“Parents are just shocked by how fresh it is,” Osborne said.

Osborne recently was recently named the 2018 Josephine Martin National Policy Fellow by The School Nutrition Foundation. The fellowship is named for a national leader in the child nutrition field and included a $3,000 grant for Osborne to visit Washington.

Osborne said she attended educational workshops and met two North Carolina congressmen. One was 8th District Rep. Richard Hudson, whose district includes part of Cumberland County.

Hudson was attentive, Osborne said, as she asked him to oppose legislation that school officials expect would severely curtail funding for student meals. She also asked him to support the Healthy Breakfasts Help Kids Learn Act, which is designed to provide breakfast to more children and make those breakfasts with American-grown food.

Osborne hopes to see Hudson again to advocate for the schools.

“He had said that he’s never had lunch in Cumberland County schools,” she said. “So I told him that I’m going to send him a personal invitation, and I hope that he takes me up on it.”