Food banks, schools rush to feed food-insecure students over summer

Summer break is about to begin in the borderland and it's one of the toughest times of year for parents to feed their kids, as they lose access to the meals they relied on.

El Pasoans Fighting Hunger Interim CEO Kris Yagel says El Paso has a food insecurity rate at almost 40%, which he says is about double than the national and Texas average.

Right now, they're working on getting as much fresh fruits and vegetables this harvest season for the children, but struggle with finding a source for protein. 

"They're going to have this insecurity about, 'Man, am I going to eat breakfast today or is it going to be at 11:00 or 9:00 or 8:00?' And it moves around," says Yagel. "So that puts some extra pressure on parents to provide a consistent home life during the summer."

During the break, Canutillo Independent School District will offer meals to any child 18 years and younger, both breakfast and lunch. 

It's completely free and they do not check any ID, address, or proof of low income — it's open to the entire community. 

"This is precisely why we serve these three meals during the summer, because we know that a lot of families rely on school for healthy meals, rely on schools to provide a meal, for breakfast and lunch for their children," says Canutillo ISD spokesperson Gustavo Reveles. "We provide to our families to make sure that students during the summer do not go hungry, that they're ready to come back to us."

Canutillo ISD joins IDEA Public Schools and El Paso Community College on the list of schools continuing to put food on the plates of hungry students. 

Canutillo ISD

Breakfast will be served from 7:30 a.m. to 8:15 a.m. and lunch from 11 a.m. to 12:15 p.m. Monday through Friday at the following campuses: 

• Alderete Middle School
801 Talbot Road
June 1 – July 10
• Canutillo Middle School
7311 Bosque Road
June 1 – June 12
• Davenport Elementary School
8401 Remington Drive
June 1 – July 10
• Reyes Elementary School
7440 Northern Pass Drive
June 1 – July 10
• Northwest Early College High School
6701 South Desert Boulevard
May 26 – June 25

El Paso Community College

The Mobile Pantry will be on every Tuesday from June 2 to November, from 10:00 a.m. to noon, unless there is an alternative time noted.

• Mission del Paso campus, Horseshoe: June 2 will open 11:00 a.m. – 1:00 p.m.
• Valle Verde campus, Parking Lot L (Drive Thru)
• Transmountain campus, Parking Lot B (Drive Thru)
• Rio Grande campus, Parking Lot C
• Northwest campus, Parking Lot A     

The dates for each location can be find on EPCC's website, here.

IDEA Public Schools

Families seeking more information about summer meal availability for can contact the cafeteria manager at any IDEA campus or visit IDEA Public Schools online.