Dundee Library to serve free lunches for kids this summer

The Fox River Valley Public Library District is offering free boxed lunches throughout the summer for kids needing a nutritious meal.

Pointing to a high percentage of area students who receive free or reduced-price lunches during the academic year, Director Roxane Bennett said library officials wanted to provide them with affordable, balanced meals when school is no longer in session.

The meal program could also entice students to sign up for the summer reading challenge or introduce them to library resources, Deputy Director Lauren Rosenthal said. It's the first summer the library district is offering the lunches, which are available for youths 18 and younger.

"That's the goal: Get them in the door, get some nutritious food in them and get them reading to prevent that summer slide," Rosenthal said.

The lunches will be served noon to 1 p.m. every weekday from June 5 to Aug. 14 in the meeting room of the Dundee Library, 555 Barrington Ave., East Dundee. The library is operating as an open site, Rosenthal said, meaning children don't have to be enrolled in a library program or attend a Community Unit District 300 school to receive the meals.

"It's a little more difficult to manage because we're not sure how many people are going to come on any given day," she said. "But we think we'll be able to reach a lot of underserved folks."

The library district had to apply to be considered for the federally funded Summer Food Service Program, which is administered by the Illinois State Board of Education, Rosenthal said. Once approved, several library staff members learned how to manage the program during a training session with the Northern Illinois Food Bank, the organization that prepares and delivers the meals.

The library district is operating the program on a volunteer basis, Bennett said, noting several community members, businesses and organizations will distribute the boxes. First American Bank also donated a large refrigerator that made the free meal operation possible, Rosenthal said.

The meals will vary every day, she said, though each is guaranteed to include a serving of meat or a meat alternative, dairy, fruits or vegetables, and grain. The food must be consumed on site during the scheduled program hours.