[Congressional Record (Bound Edition), Volume 161 (2015), Part 9]
[House]
[Page 13014]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office, www.gpo.gov]




                         SUMMER FOOD ROCKS TOUR

  The SPEAKER pro tempore. The Chair recognizes the gentleman from 
Massachusetts (Mr. McGovern) for 5 minutes.
  Mr. McGOVERN. Mr. Speaker, on July 17, I hosted my second annual 
Summer Food Rocks Tour in my district to bring attention to the 
importance of summer meals and USDA's Summer Food Service Program, 
which ensures that low-income children continue to receive nutritious 
meals when school is not in session.
  I was honored to be joined on the tour by USDA Under Secretary for 
Food, Nutrition, and Consumer Services Kevin Concannon, as well as many 
local, State, Federal, and nonprofit partners.
  Mr. Speaker, for millions of low-income students, summer break isn't 
as carefree as it should be. For these children, summer is a time of 
great uncertainty. During the school year, they have access to 
reliable, healthy school breakfasts and school lunches, but when school 
is out, these children and their families are often left scrambling to 
find enough to eat.
  According to Share Our Strength, a leading national partner on summer 
meals, 43 percent of low-income families say it is harder to make ends 
meet during the summer, and they must budget an extra $300 a month for 
groceries when kids are home from school in the summer. For families 
already struggling to put food on the table, these can be daunting 
challenges.
  Summer should not be a time of increased hunger among our children. 
That is where USDA's Summer Food Service Program comes in. It is a 
federally funded, State-administered program that reimburses providers 
who serve healthy meals to children and teens in low-income areas at no 
charge during the summer. Local sponsors serve meals at community sites 
on set days and times. Sites may be located in a variety of settings, 
such as schools, recreation centers, parks, community centers, day 
camps, housing projects, and Indian reservations.
  My Summer Food Rocks Tour began at Koziol Elementary School in Ware, 
Massachusetts. We had the opportunity to serve breakfast and speak with 
kids and their families about the importance of summer meals, and Share 
Our Strength was there to distribute sunglasses to the children, which 
they all loved.
  Our next stop was Fisher Hill Elementary School in Orange, 
Massachusetts. There, we met with children attending day camp at a 
school who receive breakfast through the summer meals program. We got a 
chance to play basketball with the kids. The kids were definitely 
better than us.
  Then we were off to the Spanish American Center in Leominster, 
Massachusetts, where we were hosted by the center's executive director, 
Neddy Latimer. We participated in a roundtable discussion on the 
successes and challenges of the summer meals program. We then had the 
opportunity to tour the center's newly constructed kitchen and serve 
lunch to an enthusiastic group of children.
  Our day ended at the Goddard School in my hometown of Worcester. 
Under Secretary Concannon led a roundtable discussion on national 
standards for the school lunch program. During the discussion, we were 
treated to a delicious lunch prepared by the Worcester Public Schools 
Nutrition Department.
  We wrapped up our visit by touring two Worcester Public Schools food 
trucks and learning more about this innovative mobile meals program 
that runs throughout the city.
  Mr. Speaker, I want to thank everyone who joined me and my Summer 
Food Rocks Tour, especially Under Secretary Concannon, the site 
sponsors and volunteers, and the children and families who reminded me 
of why summer meals are so really important.
  A child's need for healthy, nutritious food doesn't just end when the 
school year does. We know that providing children access to healthy 
meals in the summer months has clear health, education, and economic 
benefits; and since summer meals must be served in a community setting, 
children have another incentive to participate in summer enrichment and 
recreation programs that, in turn, help them return to school ready to 
learn in the fall.
  This summer, USDA plans to serve more than 200 million free meals to 
children 18 years and under at approved summer meals sites. I have no 
doubt that they will achieve this ambitious goal.
  But there is still a lot of work to be done. USDA estimates that only 
one out of six students that gets a free or reduced price school meal 
during the school year receives a summer meal. As we consider the next 
Child Nutrition Reauthorization bill, we need to make sure that all 
students who are eligible for school meals have access to free summer 
meals and that States and local communities have the funding and 
resources they need to reach all eligible children.
  An easy way to find a summer meals site near you is to text FOOD to 
877-877, or visit USDA's Summer Food Rocks page online.
  Over August recess, I encourage all of my colleagues to visit a 
summer meals site in your district. I know that you will be just as 
impressed as I was at the incredible work being done right in your own 
community to ensure that no child goes hungry in the summer.
  Mr. Speaker, we can and we should do more to end hunger now.

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