Tacoma Public Schools offering summer programs and free meals for youth

TACOMA, Wash. — Tacoma Public Schools are offering free lunches for kids at parks across Tacoma this summer. Along with lunch, staff members will be leading games and activities to keep kids busy at six of the ten park sites.

Metro Parks Tacoma is coordinating the free Summer Playground and Lunch Program, which is available to all youth aged 18 and younger.

The program will run every weekday from June 24 through August 30, with the exception of July 4. Lunch will be from 12:30 to 1:30 p.m., and meals must be eaten on site. Activity sites will run from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.

A list of meal and playground sites can be found on the Metro Parks webpage and are listed below.

Lunch & Playground Program:

• Franklin Park, 1201 S. Puget Sound Ave.
• Manitou Park, 4408 American Lake Blvd.
• Northeast Tacoma Playground, 5520 29th St. N.E.
• South Park, 4851 S. Tacoma Way
• Verlo Playfield, 4321 McKinley Ave.
• Wright Park, 501 South I St.

Lunch Only:

• Roosevelt Park, 3601 E. Roosevelt Ave.
• Salishan Family Investment Center, 1724 East 44th St.
• Titlow Park, 8425 6th Ave.
• Wapato Park, 6500 S. Sheridan Ave.

Tacoma Schools also highlighted the availability of funding for summer meals for eligible families who lose access to free school meals over the summer months. SUN Bucks, also known as P-EBT, is a new federal program granting families an allotment of $120 for each eligible child to help cover the cost of groceries when school is out of session. SUN Bucks can be used to buy food at locations like grocery stores, farmers markets, and corner stores. Eligibility is based primarily on household income or participation in other public assistance programs like SNAP and TANF. Families can use this screening tool to see if their child is eligible.

No matter where they’ll be this summer, families can use the USDA website to find summer meal programs across the country, and families seeking food assistance for their children can also contact the USDA National Hunger Hotline, operated by Hunger Free America.

Once school starts back September 9, Tacoma Public Schools students will continue to receive breakfast and lunch at no cost.

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