By Macey Wurm
Reporting for West Seattle Blog
The city of Seattle’s Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) will be back this season beginning tomorrow (June 24). For more than 50 years, the program has existed as a means of filling the gap in the period when children lose access to lunches provided throughout the school year.
“At a time when groceries and other living expenses are on the rise, the Summer Meals Program helps take pressure off families and makes sure children and teens can get healthy food during the summer. No child in Seattle should go hungry because cafeterias are closed,” said Mayor Katie Wilson in a news release.
The announcement of the program’s return this summer comes after a late April announcement by the Mayor’s Office that Wilson will be implementing free school meals for all Seattle Public Schools students this upcoming fall. The initiative will be funded with the Families, Education, Preschool, and Promise levy which passed last year.
SFSP is led by the Seattle Department of Human Services in collaboration with Seattle Public Schools, Seattle Parks and Recreation, and United Way of King County. It is federally funded through the U.S. Department of Agriculture.
Last year, the program provided more than 80,000 meals to children aged 1-18 during the summer months in the form of breakfast, lunch, and snacks. This year, 50 sites across the city and 8 in West Seattle and vicinity will be serving food. No ID, proof of address, application, or paperwork is required to receive a meal.
Here are the closest locations, dates of operations, types of meals provided, and service times:
High Point Community Center
6920 34th Ave SW
Monday – Friday
June 24 – August 21
Lunch: 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Snack: 3:00-3:30 p.m.
Closed July 3
Highland Park Playground
1100 SW Cloverdale
Monday – Friday
June 29 – August 20
Lunch: 12:00 – 1:00 p.m.
Snack: 2:00 – 3:00 p.m.
Closed July 3
Roxhill Park
2850 SW Roxbury St
Monday – Friday
June 29 – August 20
Lunch: 11:00 a.m. -12:00 p.m.
Snack: 1:00-2:00 p.m.
Closed July 3
Seattle Housing Authority (SHA) @ Salish Landing
6955 Delridge Way SW
Monday, Wednesday, Friday
June 24 – August 21
Snack: 3:00- 4:00 p.m.
Closed July 3
Dick Thurnau Memorial Park
11050 10th Ave SW
Monday, Wednesday, and Friday
June 29 – August 21
Lunch: 12:30-2:00 p.m.
Closed July 3
South Park Community Center
8319 8th Ave S
Monday – Friday
June 24 – August 21
Lunch: 12:00-1:00 p.m.
Snack: 3:00 – 3:45 p.m.
Closed July 3
Southwest Boys & Girls Club
9800 8th Ave SW, #105
Monday – Friday
June 24 – August 21
Snack from 3:00 – 4:00 p.m.
Closed July 3
Steve Cox Memorial Park
1321 SW 102nd St
Monday – Friday
June 29 – August 21
Lunch: 12:00 to 1:30 p.m.
Closed July 3
The return of the program will be commemorated with a celebration on Friday, July 17, from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Highland Park Playground. A bouncy house, kid-friendly activities, and free food will be provided, according to the Mayor’s Office news release.
For questions about the Summer Food Service Program you can email sfsp@seattle.gov. Additional meal resources near you can be found using the USDA’s summer meals site finder.