Promote Summer Meals For Kids
Children need nutritious meals to learn, grow and thrive — even when school is out. With the Summer Meal Programs, children and teens ages 18 and younger, and enrolled students with disabilities up to 21 years old can continue to eat healthy throughout the summer at no-cost at any participating meal site. This summer the Baylor Collaborative and the Texas Department of Agriculture (TDA) have partnered to increase participation in, and awareness of, no-cost Summer Meal Programs and the 3,385 meal sites serving Texas children this summer.
Keep reading to find out how you can make sure all of the kids in your community can access the meals they need for a healthy summer.
Promote Summer Meals in Your Community
Does my community already have a Summer Meal site?
You can support your local summer meal site by:
Grabbing a meal!
Taking your kids to eat meals at the site this summer, and encouraging your friends and neighbors to take their kids too!
Meals are a lot more fun with friends! Summer Meal sites are for every child in the community, so gather up the kids in your life and take them to a meal site this summer with their friends.
Lending a hand
Volunteering to hang flyers or pass out door hangers to let everyone know about the Summer Meal sites in your community.
The Texas Department of Agriculture has a library of free resources you can use to spread the word about Summer Meals in your area. Take some time this summer to distribute these resources to your neighborhood locations, like the library, grocery store, or community pool.
Share the news
Use social media to let your friends and neighbors know where to find Summer Meals in your community.
- Utilize public media outlets (radio/television stations, press releases, etc.) to reach and inform community members of Summer Meals.
- Capture the excitement at your Summer Meals site and share first-hand experiences!
You can encourage your community to start a Summer Meal site by:
Learn about child hunger in your community.
In Texas, almost 23% of children are food insecure. Simply put, that means that 23% of Texas kids did not know where their next meal would come from at some point during the year. In many Texas counties, that number is even higher. Find out about child hunger rates in your county at Feeding America’s Map the Meal Gap.
Talk to your faith community, local non-profit agencies, and school district about starting a Summer Meal site in your community.
The Texas Department of Agriculture is the place to go for finding out how to start a Summer Meal site in your area. Visit their website to get started.
- Gather your friends and neighbors to encourage your school district to be part of the Summer Meal Program.
- Help your school board, superintendent, and school nutrition director know that your community needs a Summer Meal site, and you are ready to support them in bringing one to your community!
Find a Meal Site
Use the TDA's interactive Summer Meal Site Map to find the nearest summer meal site to you!