CINCINNATI — Data from Feeding America shows that more than 386,000 Ohio children are struggling with food insecurity. And now that many schools are out for the summer, organizations across the state are working a little harder to help fill in the gap.
Cincinnati Public Library branches are a little more packed lately than usual. That’s because they’re giving out free snacks and meals for school-aged children up to 18 years old. The program has been around for years, but the need became greater during the pandemic.
“A lot of our kids and a lot of our families lose out on important nutritional needs during the summer month,” Heather Price, Cincinnati Public Library Branch Supervisor of Youth Services, said. “That’s because what meals they potentially at school they’re no longer getting during the summer months.”
Data from Feeding America shows a little over 32,000 children 18 and younger are struggling with food insecurity in Hamilton County. And with SNAP benefits going back to pre-pandemic levels, the library system is hoping to offset those costs.
“Those that are relying on SNAP benefits with the changes that have been made we can now help feel in the gap of nutritional needs there,” said Price.
The 14 participating branch locations provide anything from a juice box and crackers to soups and other hot meals for lunch and dinner. At the Price Hill location, they provide 15 snacks and meals a day to the children in their community. It’s all made possible through a partnership with UMC Food Ministry.
“Often we serve all of them, especially the meals, because those are later in the afternoon and we have more kids that are in the library,” she said.
Cincinnati Public Library served nearly 1 million children during the pandemic, and they’re willing to do more to make sure all kids have access to healthy food.
“We can up that if the need is higher and if kids start coming, then we can request more meals and get those in,” she said.
Columbus Metropolitan Library and Cleveland Public Library are also participating in free lunch programs for children 18 and younger.
