Oak Lawn Schools Offer Free Summer Meals To Kids and Teens

OAK LAWN, IL — For millions of kids across the country, summer is the hungriest time of the year. During the summer, when schools are closed, many of the free breakfast and lunch programs disappear. One in 6 children is expected to go hungry this summer in our local communities, according to No Kid Hungry, an organization that works with schools and communities to secure funding for summer meals.

“In summer, when kids either have one meal or no meals on a lot of days, it really sets them back on a lot of levels. They're more likely to get sick. Then, mentally they can't continue to develop, and in fact they go backwards,” said Dr. Ximena Garcia, a physician passionate about child nutrition in Topeka, Kan.

Oak Lawn public schools will be offering a free breakfast or lunch to children 18 and under through the No Kid Hungry and the USDA Seamless Summer meal programs. No registration is required to receive the free summer meals and you need not attend host school.

Use the map to find a mile site near you. Times and locations are subject to change so you may want to call ahead.

If your school, organization or place of worship is offering free summer meals for children, please email the information to lorraine.swanson@patch.com.

CHSD 218

Richards and CHSD 218 high schools in Palos Heights and Blue Island will be offering grab-and-go breakfasts provided by No Kid Hungry during the months of June and July. Kids and teens can pick up a free breakfast at Richards High School, 10601 S. Central Ave.

Pick up a breakfast between 7:30 and 8:15 a.m. in the school cafeteria on the following dates:

June 12, 13, 14, 15, 20, 21, 22, 23, 26, 27, 28, 29

July 3, 5-6, 7, 10, 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20

Oak Lawn Community High School Dist. 229

Summer meals for kids and teens will be available all summer long at Oak Lawn Community High School, through the USDA Seamless Summer Program.

Breakfast will be served from 7:30 to 8 a.m., and lunch from 10:35 to 10:50 a.m. Meals will be offered Monday through Thursday in the cafeteria, from June 7 to June 28, and July 10 to July 27.

Enter the school at the visitor entrance, door 17. For more information, call OLCHS at 708-741-5607.

Ridgeland Dist. 122

Ridgeland School District 122 will be serving breakfast at no charge to children 18 and younger at Kolb Elementary School, 9620 S. Normandy Ave. and Columbus Manor Elementary School, 9700 S. Mayfield Ave. The summer meal program will be made available through Seamless Summer.

Express Yourself Student Meal Time (grab-and-go) will be available for summer school students at 8:30 a.m., with the community invited to come in for grab-and-go breakfasts from 8:45 to 9:15 a.m., on the following dates:

June 20, 21, 22, 26, 27, 28, 29
July 6, 10, 11, 12, 13, 17, 18, 19 (closed July 3 through July 5)