A Day at the Beach
Posted by Salma Bahramy on Friday, August 13, 2010
When you think of kids frolicking on a beach or playing in a park during the summer, it’s hard to imagine hunger in that scenario.
Unfortunately, food insecurity in the summertime is an all too harsh reality for children all across this country. Children who normally rely on school for free or reduced-price meals during the year are often left wondering where their next meal will come from in the summer.
On Wednesday, Share Our Strength joined the NYC Dept. of Education at an event to highlight the summer meals truck; an innovative joint pilot program that is tackling this very issue throughout different boroughs in New York City. The summer meals truck delivers healthy meals directly to kids where they play during the summer, like parks and playgrounds in underserved communities.
Hosted by Deputy Mayor Dennis M. Walcott, Eric Goldstein of the Department of Education’s SchoolFood Office, Josh Wachs of Share Our Strength, and Bronx Parks Commissioner Hector Aponte, the event took place at Orchard Beach in Pelham Bay, Bronx; a borough of New York City that not only sees the largest percentage of families struggling to put food on the table, but also some of the highest obesity rates in the city.
That day, the truck made its way across various points on Orchard Beach and served over 500 nutritious meals to eagerly awaiting kids. “It was delicious,” said 8-year-old Kiara Rodriguez. “What I like about is that it is so fresh.” The Dept. of Education prepares the meals the same day to ensure freshness.
“With this truck, we are getting healthy meals to families,” Deputy Mayor Dennis M. Walcott said. “Last year, we served seven million meals during the summer and this year we want to top that number. That is why our partnership with Share Our Strength is so important. They made it possible for this truck to travel to where the families are.”
“We wanted to make sure we were reaching as many families as possible,” said Eric Goldstein, CEO of the DOE’s Office of SchoolFood. “Thanks to Share Our Strength, we are able to do this.”
For 30 years, New York City has been operating a summer meals program which offers breakfast and lunch free of charge to anyone who is under 18 years old at more than 1,000 locations, including pools and parks in all five boroughs.
This is the first year the Dept. of Education has partnered with Share Our Strength in offering a mobile truck to increase access to the city’s summer meals program and we hope it’s just the beginning of many other creative solutions that will continue to break down the barriers between children and food.
August 13, 2010 | 0 comment(s) | Tags: new york city, no kid hungry, state partnerships, summer meals
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