Summer Meals: Wrapping up a great summer

October 16, 2012 Thanks for all your hard work feeding kids this summer! The first numbers are in and we’re thrilled to say that, thanks to outreach and your hard work, Washington added 18 new sponsors and 70 sites across the state in 2012! Debrief summer 2012 so you're prepared for 2013 To keep the momentum going for Summer Meals 2013, we encourage you to debrief how things went this summer: Meet with sponsors and sites in your community to share what worked and didn’t work.  Use these revised county fact sheets to connect with local sponsors. Talk to community partners – did the Summer Meals program serve the kids and families they work with? Identify gaps in service and brainstorm community organizations like food banks, Parks & Recreation Departments and faith-based groups that might help fill the need in 2013. Here is a great planning timeline with tips on what to do in the fall, winter and spring to ensure your 2013 summer program is a great success.  For more information, check out the Summer Meals Outreach Toolkit. WithinReach would be happy to help you convene a debrief meeting or contact new organizations in your community; please email Claire Lane or call 206-830-7642.  Make sure OSPI has your final meal counts for 2012 Please submit meal counts to OSPI for reimbursement as soon as possible.  For questions, email Donna Parsons or call (360) 725-6200. Summer Meals fact sheets Check out the revised county fact sheets that include all sponsors and open sites from this summer.  Use the information to help your community begin planning to reach more kids next summer.   These will be updated as this summer’s final meal counts and October’s free/reduced price school meal enrollment are available from OSPI.  We expect that schools eligible to be 2013 summer meal sites will be posted in January. Washington Food Coalition highlights food bank sponsors The statewide Washington Food Coalition highlighted a variety of food banks that are Summer Meals sponsors at October’s annual conference in Chelan. Summer Meals staff from Des Moines Area Food Bank, FISH Food Bank in Ellensburg, Food Lifeline and Entiat Valley Community Services Food Bank, along with WithinReach staff, talked about the great opportunities and some challenges that local food banks encounter feeding kids over the summer. Thanks to all who participated! Hunger rising faster in Washington than most of the U.S. Since the beginning of the Great Recession, the number of Washington families struggling with hunger has increased sharply. Between 2008 and 2011, 75,000 new households joined the ranks of the hungry; the rate of hunger in the state is the highest it has ever been. Washington ranks 14th among all states for hunger and for food insecurity.  Learn more by reading Hungry in Washongton 2012 The WA Summer Meals Partnership sends periodic newsletters to keep statewide partners up-to-date on the latest information about the Summer Meals Program.  http://www.icontact-archive.com/C9ZecoQL5yw3xrxuUf8TXmIRm97JL-Ju?w=4