GUEST POST FROM MATT KING, CEO OF HUNGER TASK FORCE – Every food bank knows the challenge. When school lets out for summer, one of the nation’s most effective anti-hunger programs temporarily disappears from children’s daily routines. Families that rely on school breakfast and lunch programs suddenly face additional food costs at a time when many household budgets are already stretched thin.
In Milwaukee, where one in four children lives in poverty, that challenge is impossible to ignore.
That reality has shaped how we approach providing summer meals at Hunger Task Force. As a food bank, we cannot think only about food distribution through traditional safety nets. We must think about access, coordination and whether programs are actually accessible for families.
That is why we work year-round with national and local partners, including the Department of Public Instruction, No Kid Hungry, the USDA, Kohl’s and Centers for Independence, to connect children with healthy meals through the Summer Food Service Program, Rural Non-Congregate meal service and Summer EBT.
The Summer Food Service Program remains one of the nation’s most effective anti-hunger tools. It provides free meals to children ages 18 and younger at schools, parks, libraries, community centers, faith-based organizations and other places children already gather when school is out.
The program’s strength is simplicity in access. Children do not need to register, prove income or participate in another assistance program. They simply show up at a public meal site during its hours of service.
In Milwaukee, we lead a nationally-recognized Summer Meals Collaborative – a network of over 130 schools, community organizations, local government agencies and meal providers – that works together to expand summer meal access. As an organizing agency, we connect programs and partners to meal providers, funding opportunities and best practices in Milwaukee and across the state of Wisconsin. Last year, more than 475,000 summer meals were served to youth across Milwaukee County, demonstrating the impact of community partnerships in ensuring children have reliable access to nutritious food throughout the summer months.
The work also requires solving practical gaps that can limit participation.
Breakfast and lunch sponsors receive reimbursement through the Summer Food Service Program, but many sites do not receive reimbursement for supper. Because of the generosity of Kohl’s, Hunger Task Force helps cover these additional meal costs to ensure children have access to nutritious food throughout the day while reducing financial stress for many families.
That is where food banks can bring unique value. We understand federal nutrition programs, but we also understand donors, foundations and corporate partners. When those resources are aligned, communities can build something stronger than any single funding stream could support alone.
Summer meal sites also do more than provide food. They create safe places for children to gather, connect families to community resources, and strengthen relationships among organizations that might otherwise work separately. The infrastructure built for summer often strengthens anti-hunger work year-round.
Some of the most promising opportunities are now emerging in rural communities.
In rural Wisconsin, the challenge looks different. Daily travel to a designated meal site can be unrealistic for many families. Rural non-congregate meal service helps solve that problem by allowing approved sites to provide meals through pick-up and take-home models, reaching children when daily attendance at a meal site is not feasible.
The growth has been remarkable. In 2023, Hunger Task Force supported 11 sponsors operating 20 sites across 13 counties. In just three years, that network has expanded to 52 sponsors operating 115 sites in 40 counties.
From my vantage point, that expansion shows what is possible when policy flexibility is paired with local execution. Our role has been to provide technical assistance, coordination and outreach so sponsors can reach children who previously couldn’t participate in summer meal programs.
Between rural and urban communities, more than 1.2 million healthy and free meals were distributed to children last summer across the state of Wisconsin.
For food banks, the lesson is clear – summer hunger is not solved by food alone. It is solved when schools, government agencies, community organizations and donors work together to remove barriers and expand access.
The Summer Food Service Program remains one of the country’s most important anti-hunger investments, but its greatest impact comes when local communities build the partnerships needed to make it work on the ground. At Hunger Task Force, we have learned that when organizations share responsibility, align resources and focus on outcomes instead of ownership, more children are nourished.
As food banks across the country strengthen summer food programs — especially through new non-congregate opportunities — we are eager to share what we have learned. Every community is different, but the lesson – that collaboration works – is consistent.
Matt King, a native Milwaukeean, has been at Hunger Task Force for nine years, serving as CEO since 2024.
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