Child hunger is heightened during the summer. This Leon Co. meal program offers free food for kids

Alaijah Brown, Tallahassee Democrat
·4 min read
All Summer BreakSpot meals are prepared with shelf stable items and are nutritionally balanced.
All Summer BreakSpot meals are prepared with shelf stable items and are nutritionally balanced.

Child hunger is a significant issue in Tallahassee, with one in three children in Leon County struggling to find their next meal. That reality becomes more apparent when school is out for the summer.

In an effort to help bridge the gap in nutritious meals that children rely on during the school year, Second Harvest of the Big Bend recently began Summer BreakSpot, a summer meal program providing free meals for children under 18 at 20 locations in Leon County.

"We recognize that the opportunities for families to meet the nutrition needs of children becomes more difficult in the summer because of the added stress of not having the support of free breakfast or lunch for children," Second Harvest CEO Monique Ellsworth told the Tallahassee Democrat.

Second Harvest of the Big Bend, located in Tallahassee, is a nonprofit food bank and a member of the Feeding America network serving a 16-county area in the Florida Panhandle.

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The Summer BreakSpot program is currently operating in Gulf, Jackson, Leon, Madison, and Taylor counties will serve breakfast, lunch, dinner and a snack, Monday through Friday until Aug. 4.

According to Ellsworth, Second Harvest has participated in summer food programs for well over 10 years and expects to outpace the 6,200 children fed during the program in 2022.

The Summer BreakSpot food program is funded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and administered by the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to nonprofit organizations for local, day-to-day operations. The nonprofit organizations receive reimbursements for the meals provided for the program.

Second Harvest also offers Food on the Move, a mobile unit similar to Summer BreakSpot that parks and sets up temporary feeding locations in neighborhoods around Leon County for children not in walking distance of a free meal site.

According to Ellsworth, children must eat meals onsite, a nonnegotiable requirement set by the USDA.

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Second Harvest serves children in low income neighborhoods free meals through Food on the Move.
Second Harvest serves children in low income neighborhoods free meals through Food on the Move.

"Because it is specifically for a child's nutrition, they want to ensure that the child is consuming the food that's being provided," Ellsworth revealed.

The meals are balanced with milk, grains, fruits and vegetables and a protein option at lunch and dinner. All menu items are required to be shelf stable or refrigerated, limiting the menu to sandwiches, crackers, and pre-packaged fruit.

Daniel Choi, a father of three, frequents the LeRoy Collins Main Library with his children for English tutoring class and has found the free meals to be convenient.

"After covering childcare, we have to have some meals for before class because it could last more than an hour so it's very convenient and great quality," Choi said in the library's youth area while his children ate the free turkey and cheese sandwiches, and applesauce for dinner.

The LeRoy Collins library site serves an afternoon snack of milk and Goldfish crackers for children from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.
The LeRoy Collins library site serves an afternoon snack of milk and Goldfish crackers for children from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m.

Library becomes a hub for nutrition, education

While preparing for an afternoon snack of milk and Goldfish crackers, served from 2-3 p.m., Savannah Cole, the LeRoy Collins Public Library service coordinator told the Tallahassee Democrat the program bridges not only a nutritional gap but an educational one as well.

"The snack and dinner are a great way to serve, but it's also a great way to get people in and using our libraries and learning, and we have actually seen an increase every single week that we've been serving," Cole said.

According to Cole, the Leon County Public Library system has partnered with Second Harvest for the Summer BreakSpot program for the last three years. Now five of the seven library branches in Leon County are serving meals with Second Harvest.

Other popular local sites for the Summer BreakSpot program include churches, community centers and learning centers in low-income areas. Zion Temple on Lake Bradford Road, the Springfield Complex on Joe Louis Street and Sabal Palm Elementary School are prime sites serving children.

Food on the Move mobile unit sets up temporary feeding locations to serve free meals to children this summer.
Food on the Move mobile unit sets up temporary feeding locations to serve free meals to children this summer.

Food on the Move Schedule

On Tuesdays and Thursdays, the mobile unit will serve lunch at Magnolia Terrace Apartments, at 509 E Magnolia Dr, from 2:15-3 p.m. and at The Meadows, at 3535 Roberts Ave, from 11:15 a.m. to noon.

On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, the mobile unit serves lunch at Cascades Village, at 1630 Balkin Rd, from 1:15-3 p.m.

For additional information and Summer Break Spot locations and meal times, visit Second Harvest’s “Our Impact” page at fightinghunger.org.

This article originally appeared on Tallahassee Democrat: Free meals are now available for children at 20 locations in Leon County