A table of MS 108 and PS 108 K-5 public school students raise their hands during a CookShop lesson.

Fill the Gap. Fuel the Summer.


Hunger doesn’t start in summer. It’s already sitting in the classroom. The school year quietly feeds kids — breakfasts, lunches, snacks, routines families count on every day.

Then June comes. School doors close. The meals go with them. For too many New York City kids, summer isn’t a break. It’s a gap.

Kids have a whole summer ahead of them. They shouldn’t spend it hungry.

Jessica Dean, Teacher at Matilda Avenue School in the Bronx

Meet Jessica

For the teachers who notice when a child is hungry before the bell rings.

Jessica spends all year making sure every child is ready to learn. Keeping granola bars in desk drawers because she knows some kids need more than a lesson that day.

Maria, Principal of Matilda Avenue School in the Bronx

Meet Maria

For the principals who fill the gap before summer starts.

Maria knows the first question her staff asks a child in crisis isn’t about grades. It’s: have you eaten?

The Gap is Wider than ever.

New federal SNAP work requirements are putting more New Yorkers at risk as school lets out and costs rise.

For hardworking parents already stretching every dollar, this isn’t policy. It’s groceries. Rent. Childcare. Impossible choices.

Families are doing everything right. They deserve a real summer.

CookShop kid looks at another student while holding a large broccoli stem.

Hunger Report Card

1 in 3

Kids in the Bronx faces hunger

90%

Of students at The Matilda Avenue School live below the poverty line

15 M

Meals a month at risk due to SNAP changes

Summer Means Pool DaysFire HydrantsWater BalloonsIce Cream TrucksBeing a Kid

Summer means being a kid — not worrying about your next meal. Over 115 elementary school kids are showing what a hunger-free summer can look like.

Boy in school smiling and holding an orange

Give For Kids

Kids have so much summer ahead of them — and not enough food to get there.

Help make sure no kid in this city falls through the gap.
Because every New York City kid deserves a hunger-free summer.