With federal waivers to expire, Centre County YMCA’s summer lunch program has fewer sites
On June 30, federal free school meal waivers are set to expire, drastically shrinking the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Summer Food Service Program. In Centre County, that means there will be fewer sites for the YMCA’s summer lunch program that provides free lunches to children 18 years and younger.
Mel Curtis, director of the Centre County YMCA’s anti-hunger programs, fears that half of kids fed last year won’t be this summer as food distribution sites lose eligibility for federal reimbursement. The change also means that all meals must be consumed on-site this summer.
The YMCA is in the process of getting additional sites approved for USDA reimbursement or otherwise funded, according to its website.
“How do you put a price on a child?” Curtis said, frustrated with the loss of federal waivers. “How can you say, we know you’re facing hunger, but we just can’t do anything about it.”
Inflation and rising gas prices have compounded the problems caused by the loss of federal funds, causing more families to need the assistance of anti-hunger programs. The federal waiver program is needed now more than ever, Curtis said. The demographics of the program have also shifted in recent years.
“A lot of people think that these are all people that are in poverty and it’s not,” Curtis said. “The average person we’re seeing today is the working class family. And that’s really the scary and the sad part about it, because inflation has torn apart these families.”
Supply chain issues and an impending global food crisis are also driving up the cost of food. Counter-intuitively, rural areas, where most food is grown, often have higher rates of food insecurity, according to data from the Food Research and Action Center.
The YMCA and Penn State Health are targeting these areas heavily affected by food insecurity, planning a joint project in Snow Shoe on June 18. Snow Shoe is considered a food and health desert, with residents having to drive for miles to reach Bellefonte or State College for medical care or large grocery stores.
The YMCA is also doing a series of drive-up food distributions for all ages across the county, with a full list of days and location on the YMCA’s website.
Food insecurity isn’t often visible, Curtis said, and wide community efforts are the best way to help families in need.
“If the people come together and they wrap their arms around their community, it’s going to make a community so much stronger,” Curtis said. “And that’s what people really really need to learn.”
The summer feeding sites listed below are open from noon to 1 p.m. Monday through Friday, starting June 13.
Beaver Farms — 121 Beaver Farm Lane, Bellefonte
Bellefonte YMCA — 125 W. High St., Bellefonte
Pleasant Gap Elementary — 230 S. Main St., Pleasant Gap
Penns Valley YMCA — 115 W. Streamside Place, Spring Mills
State College YMCA — 677 W. Whitehall Road, State College
Moshannon Valley YMCA — 113 N. 14th St., Philipsburg
Calvary United Methodist Church — 167 Blue Ball Road, West Decatur
Osceola United Methodist Church — 303 Curtin St., Osceola Mills
Philipsburg Elementary — 1810 Black Moshannon Road, Philipsburg
Howard Elementary — 255 School St., Howard
Miles Trailer Park — Peppermint Lane, Julian
Mountaintop Area Elementary — 100 School Drive, Snow Shoe
Port Matilda Elementary — 209 Locust St., Port Matilda
Wingate Elementary — 751 S. Eagle Valley Road, Wingate
Wreck Center — 800 Hannah St., Houtzdale
West Branch School — 516 Allport Cutoff, Morrisdale