Pictured: Throughout the summer, children can receive BackPacks full of kid-friendly, healthy foods at locations throughout the community

For eleventh year, hunger relief organization joins hundreds of partners to ‘fill the hunger gap’ while school is out. More than 40,000 children in Sarasota and DeSoto counties are at risk of hunger this summer when they lose access to free and reduced-cost meals at school. Funded through contributions to its annual Campaign Against Summer Hunger, All Faiths Food Bank (AFFB) will join hundreds of community partners and programs to provide healthy, nutritious food for children at 45 sites throughout the community all summer long. To reach as many children as possible, AFFB works with schools, libraries, early learning centers, summer camps, community centers and numerous other organizations throughout Sarasota and DeSoto counties. The groceries are provided through school pantries, family meals, BackPacks filled with food, and community events – in addition to All Faiths Food Bank’s regularly scheduled food distributions and mobile pantries. Last year, with the support of 300 partners and programs, All Faiths Food Bank served more than 107,000 meals through its summer feeding programs.
Sarasota and DeSoto County Schools’ Food and Nutrition Services (FNS) departments will, once again, offer its Summer BreakSpots – a federally-funded program that provides nutritious meals at no cost to children 18 and under during the summer. Operating at schools, nonprofit organizations, and government entities – such as parks and libraries – Summer BreakSpot reimburses participating organizations for meals through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) Summer Food Service Program or Seamless Summer Option. During FNS distributions at select school campuses, AFFB provides supplemental food resources, as well as food for school pantries. Since its inception in 2013, AFFB’s Campaign Against Summer Hunger has raised awareness of the issue of child hunger in our community, while raising more than $16 million in donations. This year’s lead investors are Charles & Margery Barancik Foundation and Gulf Coast Community Foundation; chairing the effort is Lisa Krouse. More information about Sarasota County Schools’ summer meal resources can be found at sarasotacountyschools.net/summerfeeding or by calling 941-486-2199. To find a summer food site, visit allfaithsfoodbank.org/summer-food-sites. To learn how you can help children and families experiencing hunger, visit allfaithsfoodbank.org or call 941-379-6333.

Pictured: Throughout the summer, children can receive BackPacks full of kid-friendly, healthy foods at locations throughout the community