Photo by Deb Gau After arriving outside St. Stephen Lutheran Church on Wednesday morning, Christina Lonien and Johanna Klingbile decided to wait outside the bus for kids to come pick up meals available through Marshall Public Schools.

MARSHALL — Wednesday was the first day many area schools were officially closed down for COVID-19 response. But in a few places around Marshall, big yellow school buses were still waiting for children.

In the parking lot outside St. Stephen Lutheran Church, Christina Lonien and Johanna Klingbile carried a cooler full of sack lunches off the bus. It was right around 11 a.m., and there was already a car or two with families starting to pull into the lot. Klingbile and Lonien handed packed lunch and breakfast bags to each of the kids who walked up to them.

“Thank you,” the first group of kids said together.

Daily meal pickups outside St. Stephen Lutheran, and at three other sites in Marshall, are one of the ways Marshall Public Schools is working to help local children and families during the shutdown.

When Gov. Tim Walz ordered that Minnesota public schools close for COVID-19 planning March 18 to March 27, area schools and community organizations said they knew that could leave some students without access to school meals, or child care while their parents are at work.

Marshall Public Schools and other Lyon County school districts said they would continue to offer free meals for kids while class is out. In Marshall, packed lunches and breakfasts were available for kids to pick up. Other school districts said this week they were preparing to deliver meals for students who might need them.

“We want to make sure any kid who needs a meal can get one,” said Dion Caron, director of business services at MPS.

MPS will be offering meals for pickup between 11 a.m. and 2 p.m., at Marshall Middle School, and outside St. Stephen Lutheran, Samuel Lutheran School, and Holy Redeemer Catholic Church. The locations were chosen to try and spread them around town, Caron said. School district employees and a Southwest Coaches school bus will be at each of the three satellite locations, Caron said.

“We felt like that was going to be kind of a beacon,” Caron said.

Meal packages — one with a lunch, and one with a breakfast and snack — will be available for children age 18 and under. There is a rule to remember, however, Lonien explained Wednesday. Parents can’t come to the pickup locations alone and collect meals for their families. School staff have to give the meal packages to children, or children accompanied by or in a vehicle with an adult.

Wednesday was also the first day that the Marshall Area YMCA offered emergency child care for families who were suddenly left without options when school was closed. The Y suspended its normal hours and programs Tuesday evening.

There was a small group of kids registered for the first day of “Emergency School’s Out Camp,” said Marshall Area YMCA executive director Tom Bolin on Wednesday. “But every day going into next week, the numbers are growing,” he said. The emergency program is geared toward families who don’t have other alternatives for child care.

Camp days will run from 7:30 a.m. to 6 p.m., and kids will need to bring a sack lunch. Registration is required, because the Y has a limit on space and staffing available. Bolin said there will be a variety of activities for kids, but swimming at the Y won’t be offered as part of the camp.

While gyms are supposed to stay closed due to COVID-19, Bolin said the YMCA is working on other ways to serve its members and the community. The Y has a page on its website with information updates, links to online fitness resources, and more.

“We really see it as a time for the Y to shine in the community,” Bolin said.

The hub page can be found at https://marshallareaymca.org/news/update-hub.

Teachers and staff at MPS are still reporting to work now through the end of next week, to develop distance learning plans in case public schools have to stay closed for an extended period. During that time, Caron said MPS will continue to offer free meals for children age 18 and younger. MPS and area school districts were also offering child care for the children of emergency responders and medical workers.