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Summer Meals


Ensuring Healthy Meals during the Summer Helps Kids Head Back to Class Ready to Learn

August 27, 2014 Terri Romine-Ortega, Public Affairs Specialist, FNS Southwest Region

Children who live in the Franklin Vista Apartments in Anthony, N.M., didn’t have to walk far to receive a healthy breakfast and lunch this summer, thanks to Gadsden ISD Food Service Director Demetrious Giovas. He made sure children there were able to gather under the covered porch of the apartment...

Food and Nutrition

Just Like a Peach, Without the Fuzz

August 21, 2014 USDA Rural Development Pennsylvania State Director Thomas Williams

They looked like apples to the twenty-seven children who were waiting patiently in line for lunch as part of the USDA Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) at Old Plank Estates in Butler, PA. But in fact, Freedom Farms, a local farmers market, brought a bushel of fresh picked nectarines for the...

Food and Nutrition Farming Rural

Summer Meals: Serving Chicago's Many Neighborhoods

August 19, 2014 Alan Shannon, Public Affairs Director, USDA Food & Nutrition Service Midwest

At USDA, we value the work of the many partners who administer and support our diverse and far-reaching nutrition assistance programs. In my hometown of Chicago, an inspiring group has been meeting year-after-year to ensure that child hunger in the metropolitan area and beyond is eliminated. In this...

Food and Nutrition

USDA Tribal Collaboration Strengthens Food Security on Nevada's Indian Reservations

August 18, 2014 Melissa Baker, Program Specialist, Food and Nutrition Service, Western Region Special Nutrition Programs

Today in Nevada more than one in four children (28 percent) live in households that cannot reliably provide nutritious meals every day. This dubious distinction makes it the state with the nation’s fourth highest rate of child hunger. And for children living on Indian reservations, the incidence of...

Food and Nutrition

Summer Food Service Program Meals with a Healthy Southern Twist

August 13, 2014 Steve Watson, Public Affairs Specialist, Food and Nutrition Service Southeast Region

Fried chicken, sausage biscuits and fried okra are a thing of the past in the Mobile County (AL) Public School Service’s Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), explained Child Nutrition Director of MCPSS, Susanne Yates. “The program is providing nutritional meals that are still southern in style but...

Food and Nutrition

How FNS Partners Take Their Summer Feeding Sites to the Next Level

August 11, 2014 Kristin Caulley, Program Analyst, USDA Food and Nutrition Service

USDA’s Food and Nutrition Service partners serve a vital role in the success of the federal Summer Food Service Program (SFSP). These important relationships are critical to helping operate and expand summer meals and sites so that no child or teen goes hungry when school is out. Evaluating their...

Food and Nutrition

Small State Comes Up Big with Healthy Summer Meals and Engaging Activities for Kids

August 06, 2014 Patricia Dombroski, USDA Food and Nutrition Service, Mid-Atlantic Region Administrator

Earlier this summer, I had the opportunity to see the many happy faces of children playing on the recreational fields of the Western Sussex Boys & Girls Club in Seaford, Del. They were there as part of a Summer Food Service Program showcasing USDA’s Eat Smart. Play Hard Campaign. It was easy to get...

Food and Nutrition

Secretary's Column: USDA, Partners Help Fill the Summer Meal Gap

July 11, 2014 Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack

This summer, USDA is highlighting partnerships to invest in the future of rural America. Our partners work with us year after year to leverage resources and grow economic opportunities. They are the key to ensuring our rural communities thrive. Follow more of our stories on Twitter at @USDA or using...

Food and Nutrition

Missouri Makes Summer Meals Work!

July 08, 2014 Audrey Rowe, USDA Food and Nutrition Service Administrator

This spring I had the opportunity to visit several summer feeding sites to witness the efforts of local organizations and states agencies so instrumental in the success of USDA’s Summer Food Service Program. I had the chance to join our essential partners during summer meals kick-off events...

Food and Nutrition

Calling on Communities to Help Feed Children in Need

June 09, 2014 Melissa Rogers, Executive Director of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships and Norah Deluhery, Director of USDA's Center for Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships

Cross-posted from the White House Office of Faith-based and Neighborhood Partnerships blog: With summer’s arrival, officials at the White House and the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) are preparing for the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP). This program ensures that low-income children...

Food and Nutrition Initiatives
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