City to serve free lunches to children
By James Gonser
Advertiser Staff Writer
Concerned that tens of thousands of children from low-income families may be going hungry during the teachers strike, the city of Honolulu will offer free lunches beginning today at six locations on O'ahu, possibly for the duration of the walkout.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser
Some 61,000 children on O'ahu normally eat free or subsidized meals every day at school, and increased calls to social-service agencies since the strike began indicate that hunger has been on the rise, particularly in low-income areas such as parts of the Leeward Coast, Kalihi Valley and in Waimanalo.
Teri Soares of Nanakuli prepares lunch for daughter Patricia, 6, middle, and son Jordan, 8. Soares relies on food stamps and school meals to feed her six children.
"Hopefully the teachers strike will be over by Monday, but if not we will take it one day at a time," said Carol Costa, a city spokeswoman.
The meal program will operate under the city's Summer Fun program to get federal money and have the meals started as soon as possible, Costa said.
Teri Soares lives in Nanakuli, where almost 79 percent of the children receive free or government-subsidized meals.
With six mouths to feed every day, Soares depends on food stamps and school meals to feed her family. But with the public schoolteachers strike about to enter its third full week and her four children home for every meal, Soares said her resources are just about to run out.
"Usually I buy a lot of food in bulk," Soares said. "Since they have been home from school, they have been eating more. They are always hungry."
Only about $40 in food stamps remain from her allotment of about $500 a month.
"Many families are running out of food stamps," she said. "We want our kids back in school."
Jeanette Nekota, assistant unit manager for the Queen Lili'uokalani Children's Center in Nanakuli, said without federally subsidized school meals, many families on the Leeward Coast are in the same situation, and children are now or will soon be going hungry.
"Everybody has been thinking about the teachers. We all support them and want them to get their raises and what is needed," Nekota said. "The people everybody forgot about was the kids. We've been getting phone calls here from families — they need food."
Nekota ran into Mayor Jeremy Harris at a public function Tuesday and asked if the city could help. The mayor agreed.
| • | The city will launch a program today to feed children who have been kept out of school because of the teachers strike and therefore away from federally subsidized meal program.
The city will serve free hot meals to children from low-income areas from 11 a.m to noon at six locations: Nanakuli Community Park, Wai'anae District Park, Papakolea Community Park, Kalihi Valley Park, Waipahu District Park and Waimanalo District Park. |
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"I am so happy the city is going to help."
According to state Department of Education statistics, 150,000 lunches are served every day in public schools across the state. Almost half are provided to low-income students, who pay either nothing or 20 cents for meals that normally cost 75 cents.
Eugene Kaneshiro, branch director of the DOE's School Food Services, said the state cannot continue its meal service in schools because the U.S. Department of Agriculture requires an educational component with its subsidized food program. That is not happening with the strike on. Kaneshiro said within a day after students go back to school, he expects to have all cafeterias open.
