There are several locations in the Wisconsin Rapids area where children and teens can access free breakfast and lunch during the summer months.
Meals are provided by various organizations, including local school districts, through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Summer Food Service Program.
The programs are free for children and teens 18 years and younger. Each site may vary in whether a meal recipient must be present to receive the meal or whether the meal must be eaten on site. No prior registration is required for the in-person locations listed below.
Various studies in recent years, including a 2021 study by researchers at the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University, have reinforced the value of nutritious meals, particularly for young people. Tufts researchers found about half of young people today “have overall poor diet quality” and most young people’s most nutritious meals come from school lunch programs.
Since the 2010 Healthy, Hunger-Free Kids Act, which mandated stronger nutrition programs in schools, various programs have received funding and support from federal, state and local sources to provide nutritious meals to young people during the summer months when school is typically not in session.
Federally funded school lunch and breakfast programs serve lunch to about 30 million young people and breakfast to about 15 million daily during the school year, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture. Over two-thirds of young people qualify to receive these meals for free or reduced costs due to their household income. The summer meal program provides meals to about 4 million young people annually.
Here’s a list of times, dates and locations free meals are available for children and teens in the Wisconsin Rapids area this summer.
Lincoln High School
Woodside Elementary School
Mead Park (near splash pad)
Witter Park (shelter outside of Aquatic Center)
Ed Heuer Elementary School
Nekoosa High School
Humke Elementary School
Pittsville Elementary School
Erik Pfantz covers local government and education in central Wisconsin for USA TODAY NETWORK – Wisconsin and values his background as a rural Wisconsinite. Contact him at epfantz@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune: Where can children in the Wisconsin Rapids area get free breakfast and lunch this summer?
Reporting by Erik Pfantz, Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune / Wisconsin Rapids Daily Tribune
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