Summer breakfast program not ‘useless perks’ for students

Wednesday, July 12, 2006

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Two letters

Constance VanHoek claimed that providing breakfast to children was unnecessary (‘‘Summer food program questioned,” July 5 letter). What the writer must not have understood was that one of every four students in public schools qualifies for free or reduced price lunches. That means that the families of 25 percent of students probably do not have sufficient income to buy breakfast food.

School breakfast and lunches and summer feeding programs are often the only healthy meals some children receive. Even with help from Manna Food Center and food stamps, many families find it difficult to earn enough to consistently put food on the table.

It’s hard to believe that people go hungry in Montgomery County, but a family of four must earn $65,000 to be self-sufficient. For too many families, summer feeding programs are far from a useless perk for ‘‘perfectly able-bodied students” but instead are a vital factor in enabling students to be able-bodied.

Amy G. Gabala, Rockville

The writer is executive director of the Manna Food Center.

Constance VanHoek is under the impression that only those students on food stamps take advantage of the breakfast program. This is not the case.

I am going to make the assumption that Ms. VanHoek does not have any school-age children nor does she work outside the home. If she did, she might understand what a great benefit these programs provide. I would like to share a typical day in my home as an example of why the breakfast program is needed.

My husband leaves for work in Northern Virginia at 6 a.m. My daughter gets up at 6:45 and we leave the house at 7:25. I’m happy if she eats half a banana and a glass of milk that early in the morning.

Once she’s at school with her classmates she is much more likely to eat something. My daughter has been at daycare since she was 11 weeks old and is used to having a hot breakfast and lunch with her peers.

I work from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. and my commute is 35 minutes. I am able to rush home and fix dinner in 30 minutes to have a family sit down dinner at 6:30 p.m.

I hope this description of a typical, modern-day family helps everyone to understand that a family breakfast is just not feasible.

Alison Petersen , Silver Spring