Bucks County libraries serve free lunches to low income teens
‘Literacy and reading go hand-in-hand with good nutrition to create healthy and strong minds and bodies,’
Two libraries in Bucks County, Pennsylvania are serving free meals to the community’s youth.
Free lunches will be provided in the Levittown and Bensalem branches of the Bucks County Free Library by the Summer Food Service Program and is federally funded by the United States Department of Agriculture. The program aims to ensure children are well fed and prevent learning loss over the summer. It also aims to help children in low-income households get a solid meal at least once a day.
“With this program, we will be nourishing young minds with books and lunch,” Rachel Hart, the manager of the Bensalem Branch of the Bucks County Free Library, said in a press release. “SRSP has been proven to prevent summer learning loss, as well as food insecurity within our communities.”
The Bensalem Township School District is partnering with the Levittown and Bensalem libraries and also taking part in the Summer Food Service Program.
“We’re partnering with the Bensalem Township School District,” Regina Fried, the library’s PR specialist, said. “They are a sponsor, and they provide the meals.”
The libraries aim to help children that receive free lunch during the school year. Sixteen percent of children live in homes where three meals a day are not guaranteed. The program is taking place in libraries where there is a concentration of food insecurity.
“A lot of children might have access to free meals during the school year but they lose that when school isn’t in session,” Fried. “This would provide food to children who do not have a lunch at home.”
The Bucks County Free Library also hopes this program encourages children to want to help other people in their community.
“Literacy and reading go hand-in-hand with good nutrition to create healthy and strong minds and bodies,” Tracey Reed, the manager of the Levittown Branch of the Bucks County Free Library, said in a press release. “It’s also a great fit with our Summer Reading theme of ‘Build a Better World’ – making sure there are fewer hungry children in the community.”
This is the first year the Bucks County Free Library is partnering with the Summer Food Service Program. Summer Food Service Program is expected to feed 200 million children across the globe this summer.
Children do not need to qualify or register to participate this program. Lunches are served Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays from 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m. through July 26.
