Kids Cafe

In 1989, in Savannah Georgia, two young brothers were discovered late one night in the kitchen of their housing project's community center. The older brother had broken into the kitchen to feed himself and his brother. In response to this glaring example of childhood hunger, the idea for Kids Cafe was born.

Through a cooperative effort between members of the Feeding Americas food bank network and local civic and government support, Kids Cafe has become one of the nation's largest free meal service programs for children. Locally, Second Harvest North Florida Kids Cafe works in conjunction with agency host sites, such as Boys and Girls Clubs, faith organizations and after school programs. Kids Cafe offers children in low-income neighborhoods a safe place to find nourishment, meet role models and participate in activities designed to enhance both educational and social development.

In Jacksonville, numerous Kids Cafe sites are in operation serving more than 10,000 nutritious meals and after-school snacks to children during the week. More than 2,500 children will participate in the Kids Cafe program during the 2009-10 school year.

Childhood hunger affects everyone. Even mild levels of malnutrition can impair a child's ability to learn. For school children, missing meals diminishes the ability to recall and use newly acquired information, verbal fluency, and control of attention, all of which have a negative impact on a child's ability to learn, decrease self-esteem, and contribute to performance problems.

As members of a community, we share in the responsibility to those who are most vulnerable in the population, especially children. Children are in special need of proper nutrition to help them avoid the consequences under-nutrition can have on their security.

The Kids Cafe works through donated and purchased foods and supplies. Menus are developed and items are distributed to participating sites. Staff and volunteers assist with homework and other planned activities.

or more information on Kids Cafe, call Kelli Monroe at 904.353.FOOD(3663) or e-mail kmonroe@wenourishhope.org.

2009-10 Kids Cafe Sites