07/14/2023

Summer Eats is in Full Swing Across MA

Project Bread

Summer Eats

All kids & teens eat free across MA. All summer long.

Drop in, Kick Back, Eat up!

Each year, hundreds of Summer Eats sites pop up across the state of Massachusetts, where meal site sponsors provide free meals to kids and teens, with no registration or I.D. required!

Project Bread partners with the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) to support sites, helping them get their programs running and get the word out to the community. Our Summer Eats map showcases all the free meal sites statewide, with more added each week.

Find Your Local Summer Eats Site

MetroWest YMCA

This year, MetroWest YMCA added 7 new open sites this year, and added weekend hours to existing popular meal sites. They have chosen to focus on inclusivity by bringing culturally relevant hot meals to mobile sites and hiring bi/tri-lingual staff with a focus on Spanish and Portuguese.

Project Bread gave MetroWest YMCA a grant to support equipment purchases, part-time staff hourly wages, and their mobile van operating costs. Their team is excited to try new things, and they are getting the word out through social media, signage, and door to door canvassing. One of their most fun ventures this year is adding a “Traveling Tuesday” theme each week, introducing foods from different countries in the park with educational programming around the different cultures. Kids can vote on their favorite foods from each country and get a passport stamped for trying new foods!

Gill-Montague Regional School District

Gill-Montague has opened one new site at the Carnegie Library, and they’re focused on incorporating more Farm to Summer local ingredients into menus, especially local produce and eggs. Community youth attending the meal site can enter a raffle each day where one winner is selected per week, and the prizes are fantastic: BMX bikes, Woosox tickets, scooters, and a Nintendo switch!

Project Bread gave Gill-Montague Regional School District a grant to support print advertising, kick-off event supplies, incentive prizes, and equipment like cold and hot packs, thermometers, and small refrigerators. They’re getting the word out with social media, flyers for families, signage, and local businesses. You can actually catch our team onsite on Friday, July 21st at 11:30 AM in Unity Park with Congressman Jim McGovern for our annual Summer Food Rocks Tour!

Peabody Public Schools

Peabody Public Schools is running 3 open sites this summer, focusing on expanding meal site hours and improving the program itself with hot food at all locations. Their meal site at the Main Peabody Essex Library branch has seen high participation so far this year, and is run in part by “teen librarians” who run activities like story times, water games on Wednesdays, and crafts for kids and teens.

Project Bread provided Peabody Public Schools with a grant to support equipment purchases for their library meal site, and Peaobody is spreading the word with a robust marketing campaign. Outreach includes large print signage around the schools and City Hall, flyers and posters out and about, and direct outreach via robo calls and eblasts through the library, parks & recreation, the Mayor’s office, and local media outlets.

Waltham Boys & Girls Club

Waltham BGC hosts 8 open sites and they have invested their efforts in being able to utilize and mobilize teen workers, create exciting events, and create strong partnerships with community-based orgs and local businesses. Their kick-off event in Waltham Commons was run in conjunction with community partners and featured a DJ, inflatable obstacle course, face painting, and more. Over 200 people came out!

Project Bread provided them a grant to support stipends for part-time teen Summer Eats Peer Outreach Specialists, who help run daily activities at their housing property sites. Coming up soon, Waltham BGC will be hosting their Mid-summer Spike event on Friday, July 21st at Drake Park, featuring a Hot Shot basketball competition (winner gets new hoop and ball), music, games, free haircuts, and more. Charles River Community Health will also be there providing COVID vaccines, vision screenings, blood pressure screenings and dental hygiene information. Weekly raffle giveaways include new bikes for the attending youth!

Don't Miss Out on a Summer of Yum

Summer Eats is a totally free-of-charge program that provides free meals to all kids and teens, ages 18 and under. These sponsors and many more are working hard to put together fantastic summer meal programs for everyone. Find your local site, and bring your child, neice, nephew, cousin, and their friends!

Summer Eats Meal Finder Map