Date: June 29, 2026
No Kid Hungry Grants Nearly $200,000 to Combat Summer Hunger in Rural Communities Across California
Closing the summer hunger gaps in rural communities so kids have greater access to free summer food resources
Sacramento, CA: No Kid Hungry California announced an investment of $194,205 in grant funding to 14 school districts and community organizations, supporting expanded access to flexible summer meal programs for kids when schools break for the summer.
For many children, school meals can be a lifeline that ensures reliable access to nutrition during the school year. However, when schools close for the summer these meals disappear and families struggle from the strain on already-tight budgets. This can be particularly true for rural families.
Traditionally, federally funded summer meal programs have been required to operate in a congregate setting, where kids must eat their meals on-site. However, these models have historically reached only a fraction of eligible children, with an estimated 6 out of 7 kids missing out on this essential summer nutrition. Barriers to access are even greater in rural communities, where meal sites may be sparsely located, coupled with transportation costs, extreme weather, and schedule limitations for working parents and caregivers.
In a recent No Kid Hungry survey of rural families, parents reported on the unique hardships they faced during the summer when school is out. More than half of rural families say they don’t have enough money for food during the summer. Over 80% spend more on groceries when their children are out of school for the summer–an average of $168 more each month.
The latest grants from No Kid Hungry California support local partners in implementing non-congregate meal programs, including home delivery services, storage and refrigeration, transportation, staffing, and more.
The following school districts and community organizations received grants:
- Red Bluff Joint Union School District
- Gridley Unified School District
- Marysville Joint Unified School District
- Community Roots Food Services Agency JPA
- Western Placer Unified School District
- Mendota Unified School District
- Kern High School District
- High Desert Second Chance
- Lucerne Valley Unified School District
- Oro Grande School District
- Coachella Valley Unified School District
- Borrego Springs Unified School District
- Feeding San Diego
- Vallecitos Elementary School District
“There’s long been a huge gap between the number of kids getting meals in the summertime and the kids who really need them – particularly in rural communities. These flexibilities for summer meals in rural communities means that no longer has to be the case,” said Kathy Saile, No Kid Hungry California director. “Our grants are designed to expand our partners’ capacity to reach kids with healthy meals when school is out. Working in concert with SUN Bucks, these programs help to ensure that summer is no longer the hungriest time of the year for kids.”
No Kid Hungry is inviting families to visit NoKidHungry.org/Help (English) or NoKidHungry.org/Ayuda (Español) to learn how to get Summer Food Resources like free summer meals, SUN Bucks, and CalFresh.
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About No Kid Hungry
No child should go hungry in America. But millions of kids in the United States live with hunger. No Kid Hungry is working to end childhood hunger by helping launch and improve programs that give all kids the healthy food they need to thrive. This is a problem we know how to solve. No Kid Hungry is a campaign of Share Our Strength, an organization committed to ending hunger and poverty. Join us at NoKidHungry.org.
Last update: June 29, 2026
