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Free Summer meals program underway in Helena

Posted at 7:23 PM, Jun 14, 2019
and last updated 2019-06-14 22:18:26-04

HELENA- The 10th annual free summer meals program for all children ages 18 and under has begun in Helena.

The Munchtana food truck rolled-out Mon, June 10 and will continue serving kids throughout the summer.

Free lunches are available at seven different locations on weekdays with most starting around 11:00 a.m.

Each meal will meet the required USDA nutrition requirements and will have an entrée, milk, veggies and a side of fruit.

The summer meal program will also hold a celebratory kick-off-barbecue with family activities on June 18 at Memorial Park.

MTN spoke with food service director, Robert Worthy, who explained that the meal program serves about 400 kids a day.

“A lot of parents think, ‘oh, my kid won’t qualify for this because of my income,’ and that’s not true—any child is welcome, regardless of their parents’ finances,” said Worthy.

There are no income limits or forms to fill out to receive the meals.

Worthy continued, “And when you school’s over, there’s nothing worse than a kid coming in last day of school, comes up to you and says, ‘what am I gonna’ eat tomorrow?’ Because he doesn’t know what he’s gonna’ eat because he’s either a free or reduced student or he’s not sure where his meals are gonna’ come from and that’s the reality we deal with.”

Meals are provided Monday through Friday at the following locations:

Lincoln Park: 11:00am – 11:30am
Lewis & Clark Public Library: 11:00am – 11:45am
Ray Bjork: 11:00am – 11:45am, will be available until August 25
Memorial Park: 11:00am – 12:30pm
Barney Park: 11:00am – 12:00pm
Helena Middle School: 11:15am – 12:00pm
Skelton Park: 12:00pm – 12:30pm