SCRANTON, LACKAWANNA COUNTY (WBRE/WYOU) — Free meals are provided to students who barely have enough to eat during the school year, and the system gets complicated during the summer, but in Lackawanna County, a free summer lunch program is filling the gap.
Feeding your children healthy foods is extremely effective in improving brain function.
Thanks to local organizations like the Indigo Spoon Foundation, pop-up lunch locations for children are being set up around the city all summer long.
Kids love running around and playing during the summer, but when school is out, they often feel hungrier.
“We’re a summer lunch program for kids,” said Kim Minola, founder of the Indigo Spoon Foundation.
Now in its second year, the Indigo Spoon Foundation is back in several neighborhoods in Scranton.
The program will help offset food insecurity over the summer and could be especially important for families who are already struggling.
“This is a free program available to all children under 18,” Minola explained.
Lunch is available on various days and locations around the city.
Post Malone appears at Montage Mountain
Garden of Cedar, Lawrie’s Garden and, newly opened this year, Don Knoll’s Garden.
“Last year we started with 10 kids on the first day and by the eighth week, I think we had served 88 lunches,” Minola continued.
It’s important to nourish children’s bodies with healthy choices all year round.
“We focus on healthy, nutritious food, so we make everything from scratch in our own kitchen,” Minola added.
Every day the food is different.
On Tuesday, several kids enjoyed carrots with hummus, sandwiches, ice-cold lemonade and homemade desserts.
“We get a lot of food from the Weinberg Food Bank, so we had some extra apples today so we made some homemade apple crisp for the kids,” Minola said.
The program is made possible through a partnership with CEO Weinberg Food Bank and a grant from the Scranton Area Foundation.
Whether your children eat in-house or via takeaway, supporting healthy brain development in children is crucial.
