BALTIMORE — No Kid Hungry Maryland recently announced more than $262,000 in grants to help nine organizations across the state, including Washington County Public Schools, reach even more kids with summer meals.

For many children, free and reduced price school meals can be a lifeline that ensures reliable access to nutrition during the school year. When schools close for the summer, however, these meals disappear and families struggle from the strain on already-tight budgets. This can be particularly true for rural families.

In a recent No Kid Hungry survey of rural families, parents reported on the unique hardships they faced during the summer when school is out. More than half of rural families say they don’t have enough money for food during the summer. More than 80% spend more on groceries when their children are out of school for the summer — an average of $168 more each month.

Summer meal programs were designed to provide healthy meals during summer vacation, but have historically only reached a fraction of the kids who need them due to barriers like transportation, fuel costs, extreme weather and parent’s work schedules. In rural areas, where kids often live many miles from their closest meal site, these challenges have been particularly stark.

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“There’s long been a huge gap between the number of kids getting meals in the summertime and the kids who really need them — particularly in rural communities. New flexibilities for summer meals in rural communities means that no longer has to be the case,” said Kara Panowitz, No Kid Hungry Maryland associate director. “We’re excited to support these schools and community groups in offering summer meals in ways that work for their community — like allowing families to pick up multiple meals at a time or even offering home delivery.”

No Kid Hungry’s grant funding supports the adaptations needed to reach as many kids as possible with summer meals, including meal delivery, refrigeration and transportation costs.

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The other school districts and community organizations receiving grants in Maryland include:

• Baltimore County Public School District
• Bnos Yisroel of Baltimore
• Caroline County Public Schools – Maryland
• Friends of the Grape Inc. dba Chesapeake Culinary Center
• Garrett County Public Schools
• Kent County Public Schools
• MidShore Meals til Monday
• Queen Anne’s County Public Schools

No Kid Hungry also is helping families find summer meals near them through the Free Meals Finder map and texting hotline. Parents and caregivers can text the word “FOOD” (or “COMIDA”) to 304-304 to find sites in their neighborhood.