With schools and several summer camps closed, families are depending on food distributions to feed their children. To help with the high need, the nonprofit organization Meals on Wheels expanded their BreakSpot Program.
“It’s great help because the kids are out of school and most of us parents are not working. So this is a wonderful opportunity for the kids to get something,” said Zeta, mother of two.
Zeta waits in those long lines for food at least once a week. But to her, it doesn’t matter how long it takes. As long as she gets what she needs for her family.
“When you think about your children, you don’t think about the lines anymore. It’s more for them than us," said Zeta.
The mother of two, is just one of the hundreds of thousands of South Floridians waiting to get their hands on the necessities.
“We are able to give the children 18 and under, 7 breakfasts and 7 lunches- frozen- to last them through the week,” said Mark Adler, Executive Director of Meals on Wheels South Florida.
Adler says this year they launched over 50 sites to make sure every kid has something to eat.
“With the schools being closed for so long.. that’s bad enough but now during the summer, a lot of camps are closed. So it’s even more important that we’re able to do this," added Adler.
Normally, Meals on Wheels would provide a daily meal service for kids at the libraries they’ve partnered with, including South Regional - Broward College Library. But since the pandemic, they’ve had to launch their grab & go program.
“It’s a great program. They really fill a need in the community. With of course, social distancing we’ve had to be creative, so they helped us out with that along the way” - Danielle Duchateau, Broward County Library.
“I have relatives that are out of work like me. And I think I’m going to give this information that I’m getting today so that they can come out," said Zeta.
Mark says the grab and go meal distributions will begin everyday next week. There are several ways you can find a location near you.
- Dial 2-1-1
- Text FoodFL to 877-877
- Or head to https://www.summerbreakspot.org/ and put in your zip code.
