By ALFREDO ALVARADO

Posted: November 29, 2001

Thousands of volunteers from all over the country joined New Yorkers and city employees in long hours of grueling work searching the remains of the World Trade Center towers for missing people.

When they needed to refuel, they could all count on a hot and hearty meal at nearby Stuyvesant High School. There, a few blocks from ground zero, an equally dedicated crew of Local 372 members worked around the clock to make sure the volunteers did not go hungry.

"We had Police Officers, Firefighters, people from the Red Cross – everyone came here to eat," said School Lunch Assistant/Cook Andreas Skouras. "The traffic was constant, but our staff worked very hard, said Mr. Skouras. “I'm very proud of what we did.”

Located next door to Battery Park City between the Westside Highway and the Hudson River, Stuyvesant High School was closed to students until Sept. 23. But Local 372’s school food service workers opened their arms and their kitchen to feed the rescue crews.
"It was very hectic," said SLA/Cook Peter Sutherland. "At first we had no lights or water. But then they bought in the generators."

During the week after the Trade Center attack, Stuyvesant High School was open 24 hours and the staff worked at a fast pace, preparing breakfast, lunch dinner and snacks – as many as 2,000 meals a day.

"Whatever we had to do to get the job done we did," said Kenneth Boonraj. Boonraj, a Senior School Lunch Helper. After the meals were prepared, they had to be carried downstairs to the back of the auditorium where they were served to the volunteers.

Students and other school staff transferred briefly to Brooklyn Technical High School, but classes at Stuyvesant have resumed. "School services are pretty much back to normal," said School Food Service Manager Maureen Nevins, but many parents and union members are concerned about air quality in the area.

For security reasons, however, students must remain on school grounds during lunchtime, and the cafeteria staff now has to prepare several hundred more meals.