For more than 10 years, Deborah Roske has been making sure Wilton-Lyndeborough school children get fed. Never was that a more Herculean task than the past year, when as Food Service Director, she had to organize food distribution during the pandemic.
The Wilton-Lyndeborough Cooperative School Board recognized Roske’s efforts during its meeting recently, as Roske enters retirement this year.
“Deb was doing it all,” said School Board member Jim Kofalt. “She worked herself to the bone this past year. Her efforts were absolutely heroic. It wouldn’t have been able to all come together without her. All of our food service staff worked hard, but she is one that really stood out. She went the extra mile – or two, even.”
“Deb Roske is a hero in the Wilton-Lyndeborough community,” said School Board member Tiffany Cloutier-Cabral during that meeting. “The quality of meals she has prepared for our children over the years has been second to none. Deb contributed much more than delicious and nutritious food to our kids. She dedicated herself as an advocate, and a support.”
Roske wasn’t just a staple of the cafeteria, Cloutier-Cabral explained. She contributed to school fundraisers and special events, including the annual spaghetti supper, and put together traditional Thanksgiving meals for the community.
Roske developed an agricultural project, obtaining grant funding to teach the district’s elementary schoolers how to garden and where their food comes from, as well as planting flowers around the Florence Rideout Elementary School.
“In 2019, WLC was in need of a new food services director. We didn’t have to look far,” Cloutier-Cabral said. “Community members pointed out that there was no one more qualified then Deb, whose skills and dedication would be paramount to the role.”
Roske took on that role with gusto, Cloutier-Cabral said, making improvements to menus, training new staff, and improving efficiency. And she faced a big challenge in 2020, when COVID-19 hit, and there was suddenly a need to get food to children in a way the district had never had to handle before.
Roske filed waivers to be able to offer a grab-and-go program and offer transport for food to families without a way to get to the school to pick up lunches, with Supt. Bryan Lane delivering them daily.
“Deb has not had a day off this entire year,” Cloutier-Cabral said, “as she cooked and prepared meals for every child in the district, five days a week, whether they were at LCS, FRES, WLC, distanced learning at home, traditionally homeschooled or enrolled in private schools.”
The School Board also recognized the rest of the food service staff, including Melodie Jones, Jamie Skinner and Bill Ryan for their work for the past year in ensuring that both students in the building and remote learning were provided food throughout a difficult time.
Ashley Saari can be reached at 924-7172 ext. 244 or asaari@ledgertranscript.com. She’s on Twitter @AshleySaariMLT.