CHIMACUM, Wash. – Cada vez es un reto mayor alimentar a los niños pequeños durante los meses de verano, cuando no están en la escuela. Algunas comunidades rurales de Washington están siendo creativas en cuanto a servir a estas familias, y un reporte nacional reciente del Summer Meal Program (Programa de Comida de Verano) federal afirma que la participación es alta.
Cuando termina el año escolar, grupos de todo el estado se arrancan a toda velocidad para que los niños se mantengan aprendiendo durante los meses de verano –y también para asegurarse de que reciban sus comidas regulares. En las áreas rurales más necesitadas, algunos programas de verano consiguen un impulso adicional con ese fin, mediante un apoyo llamado “Feed Your Brain” (Alimenta tu Cerebro), de School’s Out Washington. En pueblos como Quilcene (QUILL-seen) y Chimacum (CHIM-a-come), la YMCA del Condado Jefferson sabe es muy probable que los pequeños que llegan para participar en las actividades se queden a comer. La directora del programa, Erica Delma, dice que les dan mucho qué hacer.
Tenemos un par de horas de actividades de lecto-escritura, actividades al aire libre y también reciben un abundante refrigerio y una comida. Es como venir a un mini campo de verano, así que atrae a muchos niños.
En Washington, por cada 100 estudiantes que reciben comidas gratis o con descuento durante el año escolar, sólo 17 las recibieron el verano pasado. Es un poco más que el año anterior, pero está lejos de la meta nacional de atender al menos a 40 de cada 100 niños.
Jim Weill (“while”), presidente del Food Research and Action Center (Centro de Investigación y Acción Alimentaria, FRAC), dice que la USDA y los estados trabajan para mejorar el alcance y que más padres sepan que hay comidas de verano disponibles. El nuevo reporte de FRAC muestra que el esfuerzo está redituando, con casi tres millones de estudiantes alimentados el verano pasado –34 mil de ellos, en Washington.
Es un mensaje de esperanza, que podamos ampliar este programa. Toda la evidencia muestra que el hambre y la inseguridad alimentaria de los niños llegan al máximo en verano, porque no tienen las comidas normales del año escolar. Y los programas de comidas de verano son la respuesta.
La YMCA del Condado Jefferson también encontró que un programa exitoso de comidas involucra a toda la comunidad. Delma comenta que se han organizado equipos de voluntarios a partir de los fieles de las iglesias y grupos civiles para empacar y entregar las comidas.
Los voluntarios aman lo que hacen. Para ellos es una oportunidad excelente de socializar y también de sentirse realmente en contacto con la comunidad. Llegan listos y nada más lo hacemos todo. Es mucho trabajo, pero tenemos muchas manos ayudándonos.
Diez programas de aprendizaje de verano obtuvieron fondos de “Alimenta tu Cerebro” este verano. Todos están en pueblos con menos de 2,500 habitantes.
La lista de beneficiarios de “Feed Your Brain” está en schoolsoutwashington.org. El reporte de comidas de verano, en frac.org.
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Advocates for foster families are pressing lawmakers to save the Family Urgent Response System from the budget ax.
California faces a $37.9 billion deficit and Gov. Gavin Newsom's initial proposal zeros out the program's $30 million budget.
Susanna Kniffen, senior director of child welfare policy for the nonprofit Children Now, said the program provides a 24-hour helpline for foster kids and their caregivers and funds a mobile emergency response unit in all 58 counties.
"We haven't seen a cut like that to foster care in a very long time. Decades," Kniffen pointed out. "Even when there are tough budget decisions to be made, generally you protect your children and you definitely protect your most vulnerable children, which are foster youth."
The state created the program in 2019. Then the pandemic hit, so counties got the mobile response teams up and running starting in 2021. California has about 46,000 children in the foster-care system. The helpline averages about 5,000 calls a year. More than a quarter involve requests for a team to come to the home.
Kniffen noted more and more foster youths and their caregivers are starting to rely on the program for support and conflict mediation.
"We finally started to get youth trusting it and using it and, all of a sudden, we're just sort of pulling the rug out," Kniffen argued. "It's going to be very difficult for the adults in the system but it's going to hit the youth the hardest because this is one of the only options that they have to call and get support for themselves."
This issue will be heard in legislative committees in the State Assembly on April 3, and in the state Senate on April 25. Lawmakers have until June 15 to pass a balanced budget.
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The new National Parent & Youth Helpline has already taken 6,700 calls, texts and live chats since its inception in January, and now the U.S. House of Representatives is considering a bill called House Resolution 7812 to fund it permanently.
Rep. Norma Torres, D-Calif., introduced the bill last Friday.
Lisa Pion-Berlin, president and CEO of Parents Anonymous, which runs the helpline, noted how the service has been helping.
"We have calls about gun violence. We have calls about suicide. We have calls about stress," Pion-Berlin outlined. "We have calls about kids' learning challenges. We have kids who feel lonely and depressed. We know youth suicide is up 20%."
The nation's more than 174 million parents and youths up to age 25 can call or text the helpline at 855-427-2736 to reach a trained counselor for help with emotional issues. People can also join the live chat on the website 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Pion-Berlin emphasized the goal is to offer online, weekly, evidence-based emotional support groups to those in need around the country.
"They build what we call protective factors," Pion-Berlin explained. "That's resilience, social support, that's helping people deal with their underlying emotional issues, addresses substance abuse, domestic violence, and helps children flourish."
The bill would allocate $20 million a year to the program. So far it has attracted endorsements from the nonprofits Parents Anonymous, Zero to Three, and the Child Welfare League of America.
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Parents wanting to ensure their children have nutritious meals can serve as their best example, according to new data.
Research from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign involved looking at study participants' amount and availability of unhealthy beverages and food in their households. A Home Food Inventory -- a checklist of 190 items in 13 food categories used to monitor the food environment -- found processed foods, candy and microwaveable items were more attainable.
Jenny Barton, assistant research professor for the Center for Childhood Obesity Research at Pennsylvania State University, said the study focused on the physical development of toddlers.
"The two-year-olds in this study are gaining mobility -- they're gaining autonomy -- to be able to walk around the house," Barton pointed out. "And then I think by age four, they are starting to be able to reach for things in the home, in the kitchen."
The home food inventory further examined how the location of fruits and vegetables in the refrigerator, freezer and inside cabinets can hinder a toddler's access to them, how often foods in the household are consumed, and how parents' interaction with their children during a meal affects a child's food habits.
Children often imitate their parents when it comes to food choices. A U.S. Department of Health report said it can take up to 10 attempts before children accept a new food. Barton noted her work followed the consumption of whole grains and refined grains. She concluded refined grains are eaten more often by children because parents tend to buy it more often.
"They're just not purchasing them, to the degree that we would like to see people purchasing whole grains," Barton emphasized. "That's probably helping explain some of that phenomenon in terms of children having similar diets as their parents."
The Dietary Guidelines for Americans 2020-2025 report showed unhealthy dietary patterns starting at age 2-18 may lead to obesity and a higher risk of Type 2 diabetes and heart disease in later life. The publication also advised parents to reduce or eliminate cereals with added sugar, switch from fried to roasted vegetables and substitute high-sodium meats with ground lean meats.
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