Lunch at the Library provides training, technical assistance, and grants that enable California public libraries to:

• Establish summer meal sites in low-income communities through the USDA Summer Food Service program.
• Provide learning opportunities and wraparound services with the meals.
• Provide teens with volunteer opportunities that help them develop social-emotional and workforce readiness skills.
• Develop partnerships that strengthen community-wide efforts to address hunger.

During the summer, children and teens in low-income families often struggle to have their basic needs met. For many, the summer months mean reduced or limited access to healthy food, learning opportunities, and safe places to congregate and be active. Only 17% of California school children who receive free or reduced price lunches during the school year also receive free lunches during the summer. In 2018, nearly two million school children who were eligible for summer lunches did not get them.[1]

California’s public libraries are resource-rich, accessible, and trusted community hubs, and they are natural spaces for serving free summer meals to children and teens.

The Lunch at the Library program provides children and teens with meals, summer reading programs, and other activities that support learning, health, and wellness. It also brings new families to the library where staff can connect adult family members with essential resources and services

[1] https://frac.org/wp-content/uploads/frac-summer-nutrition-report-2019.pdf