SCHOOL’S OUT! OH, OH…WHAT TO DO ABOUT FOOD FOR KIDS DURING SUMMER?

Special to the Mountain News-WA

by Paula Morris

There are many after school programs in the Pierce County area that offer food and snacks to kids during the school year. But what happens when summer vacation starts?

Carol Wright, the Director of the Graham-Kapowsin Community Council (GKCC), says there are 360 homeless kids in the Graham area alone. All of them may have depended on school lunch and after school care as their major source of food. It’s not only homeless kids who need help. Kids whose families are facing a crisis—job loss, low-wage jobs, illness, etc., need food as well.

Happily, through the generosity of private donors, and through community grants, there are a number of excellent resources in the Graham, Eatonville area, that cater to the issue of feeding kids through the summer.

ECOSYSTEM EXPLORER’S SCIENCE & FITNESS (Through the GKCC) – SUMMER CAMP 2016

July 5 – Aug. 25 Tuesday – Thursday

9 a.m. – 2 p.m.

Frontier Middle School—22110 108^th Ave E, Room 113

$25/day or $75/week

Scholarships available

Call: Carol Wright at 253-279-3071 to register, or email her at

carol.victoria.wright@gmail.com

Includes: Healthy Snack, field trips, exploring habitats, learning to protect the environment.

YOUTH CONNECTION OF EATONVILLE –

SUMMER CAMP

Last 2 weeks of July—1^st 2 weeks of August

Monday – Thursday

12:00 – 5:00 p.m.

Glacier Park in Eatonville

Free

Includes: Snack, crafts, out-door activities

Also: From 12:00 – 1:00, Monday – Friday — Meals for kids at the Community Center

Starts: June 27 – July 8

Free Monthly Dinner

There is also a free monthly dinner at the Eatonville Community Center:

THE EATONVILLE FAMILY AGENCY

305 West Center Street

P.O. Box 1764

360-832-6805

eatonvillefamilyagency.org

Open Monday – Friday

8:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Provides: “Feed The Children” Backpack program,

Food Bank, Crock Pot Program (Works with churches, private donations, and United Way, to provide family’s with a crock pot and a “soup bag” of bulk ingredients).

Contact the organization and Director Alana Smith for more details.

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Editor’s Note: Paula Morris is a frequent contributor to the Mountain News, most notably her column titled, “Newbie in Graham,” and is a long-standing member of the GKCC.