Community Corner

School System's New Mobile Concession Stand Rolls into Vernon

Rockville Bank and the football boosters were major donors for the project.

The old snack shack at the Rockville High School stadium field is gone. 

And a new state-of-the-art mobile concession stand - essentially a commercial kitchen on wheels - is about to take its place. 

The acquisition was a collaborative effort between the school system, the Rockville Bank Foundation, the Rockville High School Football Booster Club and other organizations that left no impact to the regular school system budget.

William H.W. Crawford IV, president and chief executive officer of Rockville Bank and Rockville Financial Inc., made the Rockville Bank Foundation's gift of $12,000 for the project official on Tuesday. The donation was made to the football boosters to help purchase the new mobile concession stand, Crawford said.

The RHS Football Booster Club has been selling food at home football games out of a donated shed that was converted to a concession stand several years ago. School officials said it was outdated and needed to be replaced. The existing concession stand had limited capabilities and could only be used for events that take place on the main sports field at RHS, school officials said. 

The idea was hatched to pursue the mobil concession stand over the summer and the boosters, with the backing of school officials, launched a fundraising campaign to secure the money necessary to purchase the mobile concession stand. Rockville Bank committed to the efforts early. 

With the full kitchen, the idea was like putting a chef coat on Jed Clampett and moving him to Beverly Hills. 

The Rockville Bank Foundation’s $12,000 grant helped the boosters make a dent in their $36,000 fundraising goal to purchase the concession trailer. The trailer will will make its debut at the Rams' season and home opener on Friday. Gametime against E.O. Smith is 6:30 and the opening-night festivities will commence at 5 p.m. 

The boosters will run the concession stand during home games with parent volunteers, and proceeds will help defray the costs associated with the end of the year banquet for the players. However, the new mobile concession stand can be used at any field at RHS and even transported offsite for other organizations that are part of the Vernon public school system. 

“The Rockville Bank Foundation and our employees dedicate thousands of dollars and volunteer hours to support every community our bank serves. We are a 155-year old community bank whose commitment to our customers, shareholders and the community at-large is stronger now than ever before,” Crawford said. “This $12,000 grant for the RHS Football Booster Club is well-deserved and will go a long way in helping Vernon Public Schools and associated organizations effectively raise the dollars necessary to support activities, encourage student participation and boost school spirit.”

Superintendent of Schools Mary Conway called the mobile concession stand "an innovative resource." 

"It will be available to support our schools and the important work of our booster clubs and parent-teacher organizations,” Conway said. “In addition, the mobile concession stand will be used to enhance participation in the national school breakfast and lunch programs by increasing the accessibility of meals to students.”

Football Booster Club President Sarah King said the availability of the stand to all booster clubs and PTOs in Vernon "is an investment in our children and our community.” 

In addition to the Rockville Bank Foundation and RHS Football Booster Club, other organizations that donated to the fundraising campaign include the student activity programs at RHS and Vernon Center Middle School and the VPS Food and Nutrition Services Department.

Chef Chris Avtges, the new food and nutritional services director for the school system, has been busy with RHS culinary students in developing a "Ram Burger" for the new stand. 

According to a news release, the Rockville Bank Foundation was established in May 1998 "to assist in improving the quality of life in all Rockville Bank communities." The foundation, "makes awards, grants and other monetary distributions to meet the social, economic and credit needs of our communities while reinvesting in them to enrich the lives of local residents and families," bank officials said.

For more information on grant requirements, guidelines and to download the Rockville Bank Foundation’s grant application, please visit www.rockvillebank.com.


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