Kansas City, Missouri – In Missouri, a program is ensuring that children and young adults in need don’t go hungry during the summer months when school meals are off the table. Under the direction of the Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services and supported by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) seeks to close the meal access gap during the summer.
Under the SFSP, families with incomes at or below 185 percent of the Federal Poverty Guidelines can feed their children, ages 0 through 18, nutritious meals. Furthermore, the program offers its advantages to qualified individuals over 18 who are disabled and take part in school-based activities during the academic year. This project is very important since it guarantees participants get adequate nutrition throughout the summer, which lowers health risks and enhances their learning abilities.
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The Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services coordinates the food distribution in collaboration with local schools and community-based organizations. The local implementation of the program and the guarantee that the meals served satisfy particular nutritional requirements depend heavily on these sponsors. The program’s effects go beyond simply feeding the underprivileged; it raises the standard of summer programs in places with low incomes generally.
Understanding that people require easily available information, the agency has also introduced an interactive online map. Families using this map may quickly find service locations throughout Missouri where children and qualified young adults can get free meals. Breakfast, lunch, dinner and snacks are all included in the package, so no child is left without necessary meals over the summer or other periods when public emergencies cause regular school hours to be disrupted.
Families interested in the program may locate meal service sites all throughout the state using the interactive map. Children and young people who meet the qualifying requirements up to the age of 21 will be able to receive meals. Along with meeting current nutritional requirements, this program helps Missouri’s younger people have a healthier and more resilient future.
Learn more here.
The map can be found here.
