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This story appears in the June 3-9 edition of The Centre County Gazette.
Many kids rely on school lunch to get the nutrition they need. And with food insecurity at an all-time high due to the pandemic, quality sources for getting young people this valued nutrition are becoming much harder to come by.
A popular program now entering its 17th year is helping the cause: the YMCA of Centre County Summer Lunch Program. Although the learning stops when that final school bell rings this month, the feeding won’t.
“There are literally thousands of children throughout the county that depend on the schools’ free/reduced (price) lunch program. Unfortunately, when school closes those meals are no longer available for the children and these children need to find alternative food sources,” said Mel Curtis, director of the Moshannon Valley YMCA branch.
Food insecurity has been an issue in State College and at Penn State long before the coronavirus pandemic began. But the pandemic only worsened the issues, making it easier to spot and sparking a sense of urgency in the community to help one another out.
The State College YMCA, State College Food Bank, Lionâs Pantry, and members of the Student Farm at Penn State and the University Park Undergraduate Association have come together to raise awareness of the food insecurity problem on, off and around campus.
Mel Curtis, the anti-hunger director of the YMCA, has organized various events before and throughout the pandemic to provide Centre County families with food in times of need. According to Curtis, food insecurity is something that isnât âeasily detectedâ and hard to tell if a person or family is struggling.