More than 36,0000 children in the Big Bend live in “working poor” households. Their families live paycheck-to-paycheck, often not earning enough to cover basic necessities, including food. Second Harvest’s Child Nutrition Programs meet the specific nutritional needs of children.
Backpack Program
Our Backpack Program provides children with a bag of food each Friday to ensure their nutritional needs are met over the weekend. Each food bag includes six components: milk, protein, ready-to-eat, fruit, vegetable and grain, and fits into a child’s backpack.
The program provides 4,500 bags of food every week to children in Leon, Gadsden, Calhoun, Liberty, Jackson, Jefferson, Madison, Taylor and Wakulla counties, serving children who rely on school breakfasts and lunches for their meals.
For the 2020/2021 school year, we distributed 125,000 backpacks, or 750,000 meals, through our backpack program.
Kid’s Cafe Program
The Kid’s Cafe Program helps feed Leon County children after school at community centers and churches during the school months of August through June. This program helps bridge the gap for children who receive most of their meals from school and may not have a nutritious dinner when they go home.
During the 2020/2021 school year, we have seven parks and recreation center distribution sites.
Additionally, our “Food on the Move Afterschool” program delivers free food for kids in Leon County at designated underserved neighborhoods throughout the school year.
Summer BreakSpot Program
The Summer BreakSpot Program provides kids a free, nutritious meal and snack at sponsored sites during the summer months, ensuring children have a stable source of food for their nourishment and growth when school is out.
Our 2022 Summer Feeding Program includes eight Summer BreakSpot locations in Leon and Madison counties, providing free breakfast, lunch and/or supper to kids 18 and under.
Find a Summer Feeding site near you anywhere in the State of Florida: Find a Summer Break Spot
Summer Food Program Basics (PDF)
If you are interested in becoming a Summer Food Service Program site, please complete the online registration: Summer Food Program Site Registration
Food on the Move
The Food on the Move program helps bridge the gap during summer months for kids who rely on school for most of their meals. Second Harvest’s “Food on the Move” van is delivering free food to kids 18 and under at nine Tallahassee locations, Monday-Friday, June 6-July 29.
For more information about Second Harvest's Child Nutrition Programs, or if you are interested in becoming a Child Nutrition Program partner, contact Molly Hutcheson at molly@fightinghunger.org.