Gabriela and Jose walked into the People’s Community Clinic for an appointment for their 2-year old, but they left with so much more. As they watched their daughters happily eat and play, they knew they would come back with their other children.
The hunger relief offered at the summer site is new to the family and the high-need neighborhood. The site began serving an average of 10-15 individuals when it opened June 6 and is now reaching 58 individuals according, to the Site Coordinator Rico Gonzales.
“For a lot of our families, there’s no budget right now,” Rico said. “They’re really struggling right now, so this is a real benefit to them in the long run as far as providing a meal for them during the day.”
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The Summer Food Service Program gives children a chance to play, have fun and fill their stomachs with nutritious, balanced meals which include apples, milk, snacks and a sandwich.
The summer meal site is exactly what the family needed. During the summer break it’s not easy to provide for all their children, ranging from a 2-year old to a 17-year old, when they’re home, especially since Jose is the only one who works.
Jose has no option but to work 12 to 13 hour workdays, Monday through Sunday, in construction, but sometimes there are days where he won’t have any work. When there’s no income coming into their household, the family will resort to using what little they have saved up.
Their savings don’t last long and Jose will look for any manual labor to help the family.
“I’ll look for anything, if there’s a tree or trash to throw away, I’ll throw it away,” Jose said. “The point is to make money.”
Though their two oldest children, a 16 and 17-year old, work to provide for themselves and to help their family with utility bills, it’s still not enough. Sometimes the family is forced to pawn their belongings.
With the children at home for the summer, the air conditioner and TV are on the whole day causing their electricity bill to rise, but that’s not their only struggle.
“They want to be eating all the time and we have to ration the food,” Gabriela said.
To help stretch their budget, Gabriela looks at newspapers for any discounts or sales that grocery stores might be having and buys the lowest-cost items. Meat and fresh produce is hard to come by and the family relies on staples to get through the summer.
“Sometimes we will have enough to buy [food], but most of the time we don’t,” Jose said.
In the meantime, the family will continue to visit the summer meal site where they don’t have to worry about what their children will have for lunch.
“Thank you so much for the food that y’all provide the children right now that they are not in school,” Gabriela said. “It really helps them coming here.”
