Summer Hunger: Hard To Forget
By Bill Shore
Founder and CEO, Share our Strength
These hot summer days inevitably make me nostalgic for my childhood in Pittsburgh. For me, like most kids, summer meant lazy days playing in the sprinkler and waiting for the magic moment when my parents would suggest we go out for ice cream. But for kids like Paul, summer prompts a very different memory.
The No Kid Hungry team met Paul at high school just outside of Washington, DC. His mom lost her job last year, and the family relied on school meals to feed him and his brother during the school year. Once the school closed for the summer, there was no place within walking distance for the two boys to get similar help. Paul told us how last summer he and his brother would cope with those pangs of hunger by playing quiet games inside. Going out in the heat was too draining. They just didn’t have the energy. A powerful reminder that food fuels summer fun and without that fuel kids miss out on making their own summer memories.
