Yes! We can accommodate many food allergies and choices but please read the following carefully.
• Students will receive two home cooked and well-balanced meals at breakfast and dinner each day. For lunch, students are given the choice of many different items to make their own sandwiches and we bring fruit, cookies, crackers, juice and water for a picnic lunch eaten near the end of the morning activity. At breakfast, we always offer cereals, fruit, bagels/toast, milk, juice, hot chocolate and a hot meal option.
• If you have checked any box on the registration indicating a food allergy or restriction, we will purchase food for the session accordingly. For this reason, it is assumed the child will follow the menu created for their allergy. For example, if you have checked "peanut-free" then we assume they will eat the peanut-free meal prepared for them. It is very difficult to make last minute changes once the food is ordered for the program so please let us know no less than two weeks prior to the start of the session. Changes made after that time may require you to bring special meals for the participant.
• Though we are able to accommodate food allergies and many food restrictions, you will need to discuss them with the Director prior to attendance. We are able to keep the cooking nut-free, if necessary, and we always offer vegetarian alternatives at meals. We cannot, however, control the food that is sent to students in care packages or the food they purchase while away from the building. We have also found that peanut butter is a staple food for many people, especially vegetarians so it is offered as an option for lunch. Still, we can and have successfully included students every summer in our program with life-threatening allergies to nuts by strictly controlling where the peanut butter is used and by separating the allergic student's lunch from others.
• If the participant is choosing to limit gluten in their diet, please plan to bring two loaves of their favorite gluten-free bread and two weeks of snacks (such as cookies and crackers) that can be used in their picnic lunches. Since meals are made fresh each day, there will only be one hot gluten free option available at dinner. It is assumed that participants will make the best dietary choices for their health and choose to eat the gluten-free option offered. A gluten free cereal and fruit will be available at breakfast in case the hot meal isn't gluten free.
• We are not a kosher facility.
• Due to the number of individual meals already required to accommodate allergies, we are unable to offer a strict vegan diet.
• "Picky eaters" are encouraged to try the food but if they choose not to, you will want to send some additional non-perishable snacks for their snack box and they may eat them after the meal.