A new partnership is looking to address childhood hunger in Allen County, taking the Allen County Public Library’s free meals a step further, to offer even more free foods to kids during the summer.
One in five children in Allen County suffers from food insecurity, which can cause both physical and mental problems, including acting out in school, trouble focusing and the need to repeat a grade.
The Allen County Public Library is partnering with Blessing in a Backpack Fort Wayne to keep those kids fed during the summer weekends. The program works alongside a partnership the ACPL already has with Fort Wayne Community Schools, which allows children to come and pick up a free lunch every weekday during the summer.
Jama Ross is the executive director for Blessings in a Backpack. She says the need for programs like these has only increased over the years.
“The soaring cost of groceries, the rising cost of inflation, that’s what’s really hurting. So, we’re actually seeing the number of households who are food insecure go up. That’s why these programs are so important, because as we see the numbers go up, we’re all able to step in.”
The organization also already works with FWCS to distribute food every Friday in the district’s schools with the highest need and will extend that program into June and July.
Over the course of the summer, ACPL plans to distribute approximately 5,400 bags in total, which can be picked up at the Main Library, Georgetown, Hessen Cassel, Little Turtle, Pontiac, Shawnee, Tecumseh and Waynedale branches.
The program doesn’t require proof of need and is open to any child who needs the extra food. It's been fully funded by donations from Health First Allen County, Do It Best Foundation, the Fort Wayne Community Foundation and the Rifkin Family Foundation.
The program begins June 7 and will end July 26. While the program is called Blessings in a Backpack, kids will just pick up regular bags each Friday and at the end of the summer, the library will send them home with backpacks they can use during the school year.
Food is available to any youth under the age of 18.
