Source: Jose Luis Stephens / Getty
CLEVELAND – The Cleveland Metropolitan School District is offering a summer meal program this year in partnership with the Greater Cleveland Food Bank.
The program offers breakfast, lunch and dinner to anyone in Cleveland under 18 years of age, for free.
Adults are invited to eat breakfast, when accompanied by children for $2.50. Lunch and dinner cost $4 for adults.
The hot meals are offered throughout the summer at 18 locations.
Click here for locations and hours, which can be found by heading to CMSD’s website.
“Would you say there’s a need for this kind of program?“ WKYC Channel 3’s Hilary Golston asked CMSD student Olivia Hagedorn. “Yea probably, definitely in Cleveland.”
“What makes you say that?” Golston asked.
“I know there are a lot of kids that don’t have food at home that need to get it at school,” Hagedorn replied.
Olivia is right.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 2014 American Community Survey, more than half of Cleveland children at 58.5 percent who lived in poverty in 2014, giving Cleveland the highest child poverty rate among the fifty largest U.S. cities.
It’s difficult to learn, to work a summer job, to study when you’re hungry, CMSD student Mason Ali told Goslton.
“It really is because the house I’m living at now, it’s not really so good. The house isn’t really that much, me coming here and getting food for this program is actually doing good for me,” Ali said.
READ MORE: WKYC.com
Article Courtesy of WKYC Channel 3 News Cleveland
Picture Courtesy of Getty Images
