Determined that no child should go hungry in Colorado, a coalition of nonprofit organizations has banded together to end childhood hunger by 2015 with the help of federal money and a boost from Gov. Bill Ritter and Lt. Gov. Barbara O’Brien. This week, the governor and lieutenant governor announced that thousands more children across the state are participating in the state’s Summer Food Service Program, which coordinates the distribution of free lunches to children under 18  during the months that schools are not in session.

The meals program is administered by the Colorado Department of Education and promoted by the Campaign to End Childhood Hunger, launched in November of 2009 by Ritter and O’Brien. The meals are hosted by nonprofit groups including local schools, food banks, and faith-based organizations, with the funding coming from the federal government in the form of reimbursements for the meals provided.

To qualify for a host-site the neighborhood school must have at least fifty percent of its pupils enrolled in the free and reduced lunch program.  Children seeking the summertime meals do not have to meet any qualifications to receive a lunch, but many of the kids benefiting from the program receive a free or reduced lunch during the school year.

Both Ritter and O’Brien say they are encouraged that more children have participated in the program this summer than last summer, and they would like to see even greater participation in the future.

“We are making solid progress with our Campaign to End Childhood Hunger. Many summer feeding sites across Colorado are seeing significant increases – in some cases a doubling – in the number of children who are receiving free meals,” said Ritter.  “We are helping to ensure that fewer children are going hungry.”

Added O’Brien, “The summer meal program is a terrific way to help our children get healthy meals until they return to the classroom. I encourage more children and families to take advantage of this wonderful opportunity.”

Katherine Moos, program manager of the Campaign to End Hunger, says that while participation in the program is indeed growing significantly, there still is a participation gap between rural areas and urban areas.

“A lot of the rural communities don’t meet the threshold.  It’s not usually because there aren’t low income people there, it’s just that the poverty isn’t concentrated in those schools in the same way that it is in the city,” said Moos. However, Moos said that “expanding to the rural communities is a goal and a priority for us.”

Sen. Ken Kester, R-Las Animas, whose district spans large swaths of southeastern Colorado, where each county’s free and reduced numbers hovers near or exceeds the 50-percent threshold of free and reduced lunch recipients, said that communities that qualify should absolutely participate.

“If this program is available to the schools, then they should take advantage of that,” said Kester. “It’s good during the school year and if we can expand it during the summer, it’s just that much better.”

Families can find the nearest food-distribution site  by going to the Campaign to the Summer Food Service Program’s Website at www.summerfoodcolorado.org or by calling 1-877-934-8643.