The Summer Food Service Program will bee feeding kids free all summer and will kick off the season from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Monday at Barbara Jacket Park at Gilham Circle.

Area residents are invited to bring the kids out for fun and food and learn the details of the summer feeding program.

“It’s actually the first feeding day for the summer, Pearlanna Carron, organizer, said. “There will be games for the kids to play and we will actually feed them for the first time. That’s what we will be doing at the park.”

Hot dogs are on the menu at the park for Monday. During the summer the program will offer hot meals for lunch or supper. Menus include meals like spaghetti; red beans rice and sausage; potatoes and sausage with vegetables; beef and bean burritos; and beans and franks and rice and corn.

“We make every effort to have a hot meal for lunch and supper and also snacks. We also try to serve them fresh fruit, Carron said. “It’s going to be fun. It’s to get the community engages and informed about what’s going to be available during the summer time. We know Port Arthur has a high rate of students eligible for the lunch program so this will make nutritious meals available while school is out.”

Call 211 for locations where kids 18 and younger can eat free all summer. Call 409-332-8877 for more information about the program.

To put on the program, the U.S. Department of Agriculture partners with local organizations, Port Arthur ISD and Triangle Community Outreach, Inc.  Meals are then distributed for free at various locations, including most school campuses.  Depending on the location, breakfast, lunch, dinner, or snacks will be provided.

According to the U.S. government, poverty is based on the amount of money that is believed to be necessary to live at a minimal standard, while food insecurity identifies those that have struggled to buy food at some point in the year.  Between 2011 and 2013, the United States national average for household food insecurity rates was 14.6% (38 million Americans).  Texas is one of eight states whose state average (18.0%) is higher than the national average.