Food for Thought

If you have children, you know how important it is that they eat healthy, well balanced meals – all year round. But in the summer – when school is out and school meal programs aren’t available - it’s sad to think that there some kids in our community who go hungry. But the Summer Meal Program - run by the YWCA - is there to make a difference.

I recently had a chance to see how this program works first-hand. Basically, it provides lunches to local children, 18 and under, during the summer. There are 70 sites that the City of Rochester funds and then an additional 30 sites that Foodlink funds.

Have you had a chance to read my blog on Stamp Out Hunger yet? United Way teams up with the Post Office to help collect canned goods for the local food shelters. During the summer months- the food shelters are drained do to more people needing their services. The summer meal programs help elevate some of the stress the food shelters feel.

I visited the Catholic Family Center site and had a chance to talk to a couple of the kids. They had just come from Baden Street Settlement where they had been swimming. United Way funds the Youth Development program at Baden Street. Without the kids even realizing it, they used 3 agencies that United Way funds and benefited immensely from them. It was nice to hear that the kids are aware of all the services that are available to them.

The coolest part of this specific location is that at the end of the summer, the kid’s get backpacks full of all the school supplies they need to help them jump start another school year. This reminded me of the backpack event that we team up with the Laborers to provide school supplies from RCSD School #22.

After visiting many of our agencies, it still amazes me all the different programs that are out there.