1. School Nutrition Leaders:

Pamela Lambert, Escondido Union High School District for leading by example and demonstrating that the school model of child nutrition can be changed to be cost-effective, healthy and productive…And for her belief that people big (staff) and small (kids) are valuable and deserve our attention and investment.

Rodney Taylor, Riverside Unified School District: Because he believes that we need to do more than just feed low-income kids — we need to feed them with dignity. His department motto “Hunger doesn’t take a vacation…neither will we” and daily summer BBQs are testament to his commitment to treating people…like people.

Norma Johnson and Joanne Tucker, San Diego Unified School District, who understand this is about much more than just feeding a child lunch during summer. San Diego USD’s summer events bring together community partners to help families access community services and resources, creating a comprehensive model of serving families in need.

Wanda Grant, Palm Springs Unified School District, and David Durkin, San Gabriel Unified School District, whose strong voices don’t falter when they advocate for the needs of their communities…and all communities.

Cecelia Slater and Darlene Martin, Long Beach Unified School District, for stepping over the boundaries of school-universe to think bigger and broader and work towards community-wide healthy changes.

Andrew Soliz, San Leandro Unified School District, for speaking up for the needs of child nutrition directors. Lucy Hicks, San Francisco Unified School District, for creative ideas to engage kids, and thoughtful ideas to help schools swap out the less healthy stuff.

2. Jennifer Puthoff and Mary Hoshiko Haughey, YMCA Silicon Valley, because the Y is so committed to the value of summer meals (and the recent addition of reimbursable after-school meals through the Child and Adult Care Food Program) that they have gone above and beyond to educate and mentor other organizations.

3. Our members from Redwood Empire Food Bank, Alameda County Community Food Bank, FIND Food Bank, and California Association of Food Banks, because frankly, without their organizations and individual efforts, our communities would be in a state of emergency of epic proportion. Food banks are the first place that anyone reading this post will call if life’s roller coaster leaves him/her wondering where tomorrow’s meal will come from. They sustain families’ hope and engage their communities to work towards ending hunger.

4. The team at California Food Policy Advocates for providing the evidence and voice for food policy and systems change. And to Food Research and Action Center for its advocacy voice and a wealth of tools and resources that communities and policy makers need to make those changes related to summer food. To CANFIT for helping empower youth and adults in the community to be the agents of healthy change.

5.California Department of Education’s Phyllis Bramson for recognizing this gap in summer nutrition and bringing together the best of the best to change it (in partnership with CCRWF’s Kate Karpilow). Additional kudos to the leaders and staff in the Nutrition Services Division. We all know change doesn’t always happen overnight but it’s the man/woman who steps into the arena that makes it count.

6. Partnership for Children and Youth for enlightening leaders and communities that time doesn’t stop when school lets out for the summer and that we can’t forget to nourish kids’ minds along with their bodies in summer.

7. The folks at California School Boards Association for their leadership in engaging those that can truly affect change in their communities with pro-health policies that support summer nutrition.

8. Members from California Afterschool Network and Center for Collaborative Solutions for their efforts to make out-of school time programs places that kids can count on for proper nutrition, physical activity, learning, and FUN! And to the Network for a Healthy California for providing the great ideas and free resources to do it.

9. Fresno Economic Opportunities Commission for making a difference in the Central Valley and increasing access by growing their program to provide free meals for kids at local WIC sites.

10. Every other individual working to ensure child nutrition is a year-round priority to Stop the Summer Nutrition Gap. Our hats off to you.

Our sincerest apologies to anyone inadvertently left off this list.

Plan for what, exactly, you ask? Let’s start here.

Across the country, there are now 21 million children receiving free/reduced-price lunch through the USDA’s National School Lunch Program during the school year. Only 3 million of those children will go on to receive a free, nutritious lunch during the summer months through one of the USDA’s summer feeding programs. In California, 2 million children receive  free/reduced-price lunch during the year and only 410,000 participate in a subsidized summer feeding program…in other words, 80% of eligible kids may not have access to healthy food when school’s out.

So what happens to these kids when school lets out for summer vacation?

Summer meal programs present an untapped opportunity for communities to ensure that kids do not fall through the cracks — that they have access to good nutrition, so they can return to school in the fall, healthy and ready to learn. They also present unprecedented possibilities  for strong community partnerships to work creatively and effectively during these tight economic times.

So whether you are a policymaker, out-of-school-time program manager, school child nutrition director, librarian, school board member, park & rec leader, or church pastor, there is a role for you to help California’s low-income kids access healthy food when school’s out.

The Summer Meal Coalition will begin a free webinar series in February showcasing how communities are successfully working to meet this growing need. Click here to find out how you can get involved.

Stop the summer nutrition gap.

There many ways in which this theme (which was brought to the group by Oregon Department of Education’s Joyce Dougherty) emerged ranging from providing culturally- and age-appropriate foods, integrating community and school gardens into summer meal programs, to providing high-quality food.

Among the presenters, many of whom traveled from other parts of the country to share ideas, challenges and best practices were these Summer Meal Coalition members:

• Patrice Chamberlain, Coordinator, California Summer Meal Coalition
• Crystal FitzSimons, Director of School and Out-of-School Time Programs, Food Research & Action Center (FRAC)
• Janet Jendrejack, Manager, Nutrition Programs Administration, California Department of Education
• Norma Johnson, Program Specialist, San Diego Unified School District
• Jennifer Puthoff, Director of Child Care & After School, YMCA of Silicon Valley
• Rodney Taylor, Nutrition Services Director, Riverside Unified School District

Events like today’s summit are key to helping us maintain the focus on the child (not the program) as a venue where we can be inspired by the ideas and stories of others and rekindle our own passion for doing what we do. It’s easy to lose our way and become focused on the operational aspect of summer meal programs but when we are in the company of others that share our vision, we are encouraged and emboldened to believe that we can make a difference in the lives of the kids in our communities. And we can.