A new program in Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, Food for the Summer, will expand the availability of summer meals for kids who are eligible for free or reduced lunch in the school system, according to a statement by Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger.
During the school year, 3,300 students receive free or reduced lunch — only 900 of those students received lunch from the city lunch program during the summer.
Katie Hug, program coordinator, said the goal for this summer is to provide weekday lunches for about 1,500 students.
Chad Simpkins, lead pastor at Varsity Church in Chapel Hill, has worked for three years to help provide summer meals for kids from lower-income families and has now partnered with Food for the Summer.
Simpkins said the program is dependent on volunteers. They are needed to transport meals from the school cafeterias to distribution sites, distribute meals to children and set up and break down the sites, Hug said. She said volunteers are also needed to spend time with kids and provide a fun and enjoyable atmosphere.
Last summer, there were only four meal distribution sites in the district, Simpkins said.
“The goal is to identify as many at-risk kids in the district that we have and try and find a way to get summer meals to them,” said Liz Cartano, director of dining at Chartwells, the organization contracted with Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools to provide meals to students.
Cartano said the costs of the meals are covered by Chapel Hill-Carrboro City Schools, which is then reimbursed by the USDA. The rest of the expenses are covered by donations. Hug and Simpkins said so far, the program has received more than $12,000 total in donations from UNC, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro YMCA and an anonymous donor.
