Free Meals for O.C. Children Go Wanting

As many as 100,000 needy Orange County children eligible for free, federally funded lunches are not taking advantage of the program this summer, a situation officials are trying to correct by stepping up publicity and signing on more agencies to distribute the meals.

U.S. Department of Agriculture officials said Thursday that they hope to improve last year’s performance, when fewer than 8% of the eligible county children received free meals, but acknowledged that progress will be measured in small gains. Statistics for this year’s program, which began in late June, are not yet available.

“What we’ve been hearing so far this summer is that participation has gone up slightly,” said Dick Montoya, a spokesman for the Agriculture Department’s Food and Nutrition Service Division. “But there are still a lot of children that aren’t being served.”

Last summer, just 9,316 children in Orange County received hot meals each day under the Summer Food Service Program, although more than 122,733 were needy, according to officials with the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Poor participation has been a problem not only in Orange County, but also throughout the country, where just 16% of children entitled to free meals receive them.

Children’s advocates and federal officials blame the low numbers on a shortage of local agencies willing to sponsor the program and poor publicity for the program in the past. However, Agriculture Department officials say stepped-up outreach efforts have helped to get the word out and attract sponsors.

In Orange County for instance, there were no sponsors for the program three years ago, Agriculture Department officials said. This year, there are 15 sponsoring agencies. “Three years ago, I couldn’t crack Orange County,” said Cleophus Davis, regional program manager for the Summer Food Service Program. “But now the program is definitely growing.”

A major reason is that the Orange County Community Development Council (CDC) has received two grants totaling $25,000 a year to pay for an outreach staff person to promote the program.

Annette Jewell, the CDC’s summer food program outreach coordinator, said more than 70 sites in Orange County currently offer free lunches that range from pizza to chicken and include milk and fruit. Some also offer breakfast.

The meals, similar to free and reduced-price lunches offered in schools during the rest of the year, may be the most nutritious food some children eat all day, officials said.

Jewell said there is no doubt that children who do not take advantage of the meals program are suffering.

“I’m told by principals that children returning from school vacations often have visible weight loss, come back tired and are disinterested and lethargic from not having anything to eat,” Jewell said.

The Summer Food Service Program serves about 2 million low-income children nationwide. Begun in 1968, the program did not become readily available in Orange County until 1991, USDA officials said.

The lunch sites are run by local agencies such as schools, churches and parks and recreation facilities, which are reimbursed by the Agriculture Department based upon the numbers of meals that they provide. The average reimbursement runs about $2.25 per meal.

Under Agriculture Department guidelines, sites must be established in neighborhoods where half the families earn no more than $26,548 for a family of four.

According to USDA figures, Orange County received $772,031 in federal funds last summer for the program; San Diego received $710,255. The amount spent in Los Angeles County was not available.

One of the largest Orange County programs is at the Oak View School in Huntington Beach, where more than 1,000 breakfasts and lunches are served daily.

“The response has been overwhelming,” said coordinator Kathy Conner. “We’re just about at our max.”

On Thursday, students were treated to thin-crust sausage pizza, fresh fruit, orange shakes and milk. Today’s lunch will be roasted chicken thigh served with applesauce and milk.

Anyone from 6 months to 18 years old is entitled to a meal. All food must be eaten on the premises.

Food program officials stressed Thursday that children are not required to furnish identification proving citizenship.

“Some parents may think they have to register or show some type of identification,” Jewell said. “But our only concern is feeding children.”

More information about food service programs can be obtained by calling (800) 328-6476.

Free Food for Children

Many of Orange County’s needy children did not receive free summer meals in 1993. How O.C. compares to neighboring counties:

No. of children No. of children served per day eligible Orange County 9,316 122,733 Los Angeles County 54,498 779,233 San Diego County 6,399 148,507

Source: U.S. Department of Agriculture