Despite the public health crisis and economic challenges of the past three years, our nation is experiencing the lowest rate of childhood hunger in decades – and California is no exception.
We know that every kid needs three meals a day, 365 days a year. Hunger Heroes have stepped up to ensure kids and families have access to the food and resources they need to grow up happy, healthy, and strong.
Even in the face of ever-evolving challenges, there are stories of hope – among them, outstanding effort by educators, school administrators, school nutrition professionals, community organizations, government partners – amongst others. Champions have banded together across the Golden State and worked tirelessly to ensure kids have the food they need to recover from learning loss, regain a sense of stability, and dream for a brighter and caring future.
There are thousands of examples we could point to, and while we regret that we can’t list all of them, our gratitude goes out to each and every one.
Please join us in a big round of applause for these 2022 champions and the many others like them!
· Raising funds and having fun, LA’s culinary talents coming together for No Kid Hungry
Los Angeles’ Taste of the Nation returned to Culver City’s Media Park in June to celebrate its 31st year after a pandemic hiatus. Over 40 of LA’s best tastemakers and buzziest culinary talents came together to raise funds and awareness for No Kid Hungry. A shout out of gratitude to the leadership of host chefs Brooke Williamson, co-chef/co-owner of Playa Provisions and Mei Lin, chef/founder of Umamei and Daybird plus the chefs, mixologists, restaurant staff, and volunteers who lent their talents and passion to end child hunger. The sold out event invited over 800 attendees to Culver City’s Media Park for an afternoon of exceptional eats, curated drinks, sponsor activations, games and entertainment. And mark your calendars! Taste of the Nation LA will be back at Media Park in June 2023.
· Years of public service and leadership, State Senator Dr. Richard Pan’s commitment to the health and wellbeing of kids and their families
When schools close in the summer months, many students who depend on school meals as their primary source of nutrition are at risk of going hungry. Senator Richard Pan’s efforts led to the Sacramento Summer Meals Collaborative to raise awareness among legislators and families about summer meals. Senator Pan hosted the Summer Meals Picnic at the Capitol to showcase California grown fruits and vegetables, the variety of foods prepared by school districts, and create a fun summer event. Senator Pan has joined our efforts by advocating to include funding in the state budget for the California Department of Education’s Breakfast Expansion Grants, adding Medi-Cal as a direct certification program for the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), and ensuring very high poverty schools adopt the federal CEP program. At the end of this legislative session, Senator Pan retired. We want to thank Dr. Pan for his service, leadership and steadfast commitment to the health and wellbeing of kids across the Sacramento area and beyond.
· Building today’s future, how this summer leadership internship program is addressing food insecurity
This year marked the second year and cohort of the Migrant Career Academy Partnership Program (MCAP). In MCAP, migrant students participated in a paid seven week summer internship program focused on academic and career preparation, financial literacy, mental and health wellness, and much more. Through the internship they addressed food insecurity in their communities, culminating with a capstone focused on CalFresh outreach and awareness.
“What I liked the most about the CalFresh Outreach Project was that we got to communicate with our community and gave important resources that they might need. Mostly since my family uses food stamps.” -2022 OFCV/MCAP Intern
Evidence continues to show that CalFresh has been successful at reducing poverty, promoting healthy eating and living, and preventing hunger, but many individuals and families are unaware they may be eligible to receive these critical resources. Through the capstone project, interns conducted CalFresh screenings to assess whether individuals and families in their community were eligible. They were able to connect 27 families to CalFresh, bringing in an estimated $10,020 for each family – or about $270,540 in benefits for all of the families this year.
Join us in applauding the accomplishments of the 14 migrant students who participated in this year’s MCAP and thanking the collaborative leadership of OneFuture Coachella Valley and Riverside County Office of Education’s Migrant Education Program.
· Kids are starting the day with a nutritious breakfast, how these school districts are changing the game and creating a new normal
School breakfast provides the consistent nutrition kids need to learn, grow and reach their full potential. Serving breakfast after the bell can significantly boost the number of kids receiving the morning meal they need to learn. Here are some highlights of school districts across California going above and beyond to reach kids with a morning meal.
· El Rancho Unified School District (Pico Rivera, CA) – Billie Saavedra, director of food services and her team of hunger heroes at El Rancho Unified have been hard at work to ensure more students start their day with a nutritious breakfast. At the end of 2022, El Rancho Unified now has Breakfast After the Bell programs at all of their school sites, with Breakfast in the Classroom at all of their elementary school sites and Second Chance Breakfast at the middle and high schools. Since 2019, they have nearly tripled the number of students eating breakfast. As of November 2022, the El Rancho USD team served 60,023 breakfast. This number is expected to grow as students and parents are learning more about the BAB programs.
· Azusa Unified School District (Azusa, CA) – Under the leadership of Stella Ndahura, director of nutrition services, she collaborated with school administrators, educators and classified employees to officially launch Second Chance Breakfast programs at all Azusa Unified elementary and high schools. As a result, breakfast participation has increased 40-45 percent. This means, on average, 2,400 more students are starting the day with a nutritious breakfast.
· Coalinga-Huron Unified School District (Coalinga, CA) – Located in Fresno County and the western San Joaquin Valley, just 80 miles southeast of Salinas, Chris Kuchman, director of nutrition services and their team of hunger heroes have been extremely busy working to remove nutrition barriers for their students. With Breakfast in the Classroom (BIC) now implemented district-wide across all school sites, parents no longer have to worry about their students going hungry. Read more about their story.
· A legacy of supporting kids and champions on the ground across Los Angeles and beyond
David and Lynn Angell believed that every individual should have an equal opportunity to achieve their fullest potential. For five years, the Angell Foundation has supported No Kid Hungry’s campaign to end child hunger. Across the Los Angeles region, these funds supported a wide-range of efforts including home-delivered meals, pop-up meal programs, school and community pantries, backpack programs, and other steps to safely reach kids and families with meals. A big thank you to the Angell Foundation for their continued support.
· Conquering your challenges with Matt Upton, Motivational Speaker, Industry Coach, and Chief Encouragement Officer
During the pandemic, Matt Upton traveled to 85+ school districts throughout California, at 101 different school sites to assist in serving meals to kids and their families. In rain, heat and wind, Matt has helped serve over 1.5 million nutritious school meals alongside school nutrition professionals. Matt is a mainstay with the Quad County Collaborative (QCC), a collaborative composed of school nutrition directors, No Kid Hungry, and public health nutrition leaders from Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside and San Bernardino counties. We want to take this moment to give a special shout out of gratitude to Matt Upton!
· Schools and community organizations come together to feed kids during the hungriest time of the year
Many children rely on school meals during the school year, but when schools close for the summer, many of those meals disappear. Schools, community groups, and local governments across California come together to offer summer meals for kids. One example is in the City of Riverside, Summerfest kicks off “Every Child to Eat During Summer,” Riverside Unified School District’s free summer lunch program throughout the city. This free event across Riverside parks features a barbecue lunch, farmer’s market, music, giveaways, games and enrichment activities. Summerfest brings together city officials, agencies, and school and community leaders. A big thank you to the leadership of Adleit Asi, director of nutrition services at Riverside Unified and our teams of hunger heroes on the ground!
· Meeting families where they are, how food banks and pantries serve food with compassion
With higher food, transportation and living costs, families continue to struggle to afford household essentials. Food banks and pantries are critical lifelines for kids and families. We are honored to team up with the San Bernardino County Office of Education to establish food pantries at five of their community schools across the largest county in the United States. In Los Angeles, Camino Nuevo Charter Academy is launching six school pantries reaching at least 1,500 families. From helping to provide farmworkers with the same fruits and vegetables they pick but can’t otherwise afford for their families, to providing food with dignity and respect to over 10,000 families following the intensified violence in Afghanistan. We can not be more grateful and appreciative of the staff and volunteers across the state putting food on table for many families.
· Innovative CalFresh strategies to feed kids and families across the San Diego region
The San Diego Hunger Coalition (SDHC)’s Hunger Free Kids and CalFresh program teams set out to increase enrollment in CalFresh at targeted school districts, connecting families with the nutritious food they need while also making local school districts eligible for additional school meal funding through the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP) program.
Schools play a pivotal role in children and families’ lives, serving as trusted sources of information and resources. When families get enrolled for CalFresh benefits at their child’s school, it benefits the schools and community in return. The more students on CalFresh, the higher the school’s direct certification numbers, resulting in higher state and federal school funding, and greater reimbursement for universal meal programs. We are grateful for the thoughtful leadership of the San Diego Hunger Coalition team!
· The third class of Hunger Heroes joins the League, recognized for their heroic efforts to fight hunger
Amidst the pandemic, wildfires, extreme heat, supply chain disruptions, and now inflation, child nutrition programs managed by school districts and community organizations have been indispensable for California’s communities. To recognize the countless school and community leaders who have stepped up to meet the challenge, No Kid Hungry California is humbled to hear from their peers about their tireless work to end child hunger. We’re honored to recognize school nutrition staff, educators, principals, and students like Jennifer Cuevas, principal of Kucera Middle School at Rialto Unified School District and Hector Rodgriguez, kitchen manager at Valley View Elementary School in Coachella Valley.
We are so grateful for their tireless work, through thick and thin, and their dedication and commitment to our next generation. Please join us in recognizing and celebrating our champions and all of the champions in your community fighting to end childhood hunger.
Last Reviewed: December 19, 2022