Most children look forward to summer adventures that include outdoor fun, family vacation, and water activities. Operation Food Search Food and Fun Club provides a mini-camp experience for children that may not have access to traditional day camps. Designed to complement The Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), funded by the USDA, the Food and Fun Club provides a daily dose of nutrition, along with a variety of games, arts, crafts, and STEM projects. The healthy meals fuel growing bodies while the engaging activities enrich curious minds.

As an SFSP sponsor, Operation Food Search will connect thousands of children 18 years and under to meals at over 70 locations across the metro region. When school is out, kids are more at-risk for hunger and obesity. More than 390,000 youth rely on free and reduced-price school meals during the school year and struggle to replace that nutrition source in the summer. The Food and Fun Club provides access to delicious meals kids want to eat at locations close to their homes.

Program Innovation

Our Summer Meals Program–now in its 6th summer– intends to serve 100,000 meals across 70 locations, using a combination of stationary and mobile sites throughout the St. Louis region. The mobile meals concept uses vans to bring the meals to select neighborhood sites, helping to break down transportation barriers and increase access to healthy food. This year the mobile vans will expand to run four routes, stopping to serve meals where kids congregate, including apartments complexes, parks, and pools.

New collaborations and extended services include:

• Our mobile routes will run six days a week, adding Saturday service at most locations. Many stationary sites will also serve meals on Saturday.
• A partnership with the St. Louis Reading Council will provide thousands of free books to children. Along with their meal, kids will be allowed to select a book of their very own each time they visit the Food and Fun Club.
• Each Friday, a special event that engages children and their families will pop-up at a select location along the mobile route. At these Food and Family Fun Club events, shelf-stable family meal kits will be distributed to parents, along with fresh fruits and vegetables. A cooking demonstration and recipe tasting conducted by our nutrition education team will highlight produce offerings.
• The St. Louis Dairy council is providing educational materials for children to take home as an added enrichment piece.
• A partnership with Vroom, a program of the Lume Institute, will highlight learning opportunities for children ages 0-5.

Interested in receiving Summer Meals?

Please Fill Out The Application