As school lets out, pandemic relief programs come to an end and inflation hits new heights, a critical summer meal program for kids is hoping to ease hunger pains.
“Summer is the hungriest time of year for many kids. And, we know that for hundreds of thousands of families, free summer meals are the difference between kids getting healthy meals, or going hungry,” said Rachel Sabella, director of No Kid Hungry New York.
No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty.
According to a recent poll conducted by the organization, 73% of families across New York are finding it harder to afford groceries this year, compared to last year.
No Kid Hungry recently launched the Free Meals Finder, a text hotline that connects families to in-person sites near them that are providing no-cost meals to kids.
The program hosts more than 2,500 sites across the state. Each site offers anyone under the age of 18 a free meal with no registration, documentation or ID necessary.
“We’re proud to partner with school districts and community groups across the state to make it easy and seamless to find a free summer meals site close to home,” Sabella said.
To receive a meal, local kids and families can text ‘FOOD’ or ‘COMIDA’ to 304-304 to find the nearest Free Meal Finder site. For more information, click here.
