As food insecurity surges throughout the region, driven by rising grocery costs, Scranton resident Tiffany Farmer stressed that free food provided to children across the city during the summer eliminates one burden.
While kids cooled off on a splash pad on a sweltering summer afternoon, Farmer stopped under the pavilion at Novembrino Park along 10th Avenue to pick up nutritious meals — containing a chicken Caesar wrap, fresh cucumber slices, an orange and milk — for her niece and nephew, Ivery Moore, 7, and Jahmir Moore, 6, both of Scranton.
Tasia Searcy, of Scranton, left,, hands out bags of lunch to Jahmir, 6, and Ivery Moore, 7, of Scranton, at Novembrino Park in Scranton Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Jahmir Moore, 6, of Scranton, recieves a free lunch at Novembrino Park in Scranton Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
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Tasia Searcy, of Scranton, left,, hands out bags of lunch to Jahmir, 6, and Ivery Moore, 7, of Scranton, at Novembrino Park in Scranton Wednesday, July 15, 2026. (SEAN MCKEAG / STAFF PHOTOGRAPHER)
Farmer babysits the children during the summer and was relieved to learn the meals would remain available this year.
“It’s a big help when they’re out of school,” she said. “One thing we don’t have to worry about is lunch. Especially with the prices and stuff, I’m surprised this is something that’s still going. I was wondering if it was going to be cut. Everything is going high, bread, and just everything in general. It’s a very good help.”
The U.S Department of Agriculture operates a Summer Meals Program — administered in Pennsylvania by the Department of Education — which allows nonprofit organizations to receive reimbursable meals to serve children at different sites, state officials said. Last summer, more than 5.6 million meals were served at 2,110 summer meal sites throughout Pennsylvania as part of the program.
Farmer, who ran a summer camp for children at Salvation Apostolic Temple on North Main Avenue in the city from June 22-26, said she secured free meals through the program to make the task sustainable.
There were 94 participants last month, up from 64 last year, she said.
“Those meals became mighty helpful,” Farmer said.
The Scranton School District feeds nearly 1,000 students per day during the peak of its Summer Feeding Program, said Precious Gilliard, general manager of Aramark Food Service for the district. The free meals are available to all children 18 and under through Aug. 14.
“When we started rolling out some breakfast opportunities June 15, and lunch for all the open sites, we went from serving 300 meals a day to now upwards of 800 meals per day,” Gilliard said. “We’re seeing an absolute increase in the take rate when it comes to summer meals in our district and in the community. We’re seeing those numbers going up every single week … the need is absolutely out there.”
Each meal includes an entree, fruit, vegetable, and milk, water or juice, she said.
Patrick Laffey, assistant to the superintendent for finance and operations at the Scranton School District, said the free summer meals ensure kids have access to healthy food all year.
“There is so much development going on in those ages,” he said. “Proper nutrition and proper meals are so important for their growth, their development and anything related to learning. Throughout the school year, we even see sometimes on a Monday morning, students are coming in and they’re looking for a healthy, nutritious breakfast. They may not have had that opportunity over the weekend. With the extended summer break, it’s so important they have the ability to access a nutritious breakfast or lunch. The open sites are scattered throughout the city so there is pretty good access for people to have this opportunity.”
Joah Rittenhouse, youth services librarian for the Pottsville Free Public Library, noted demand has also remained fairly high for children securing free meals provided by the Pottsville Area School District, Monday through Friday at the library until July 30.
“There’s a couple consistent ones that we see every single day,” he said. “The fact that it ends at the end of July, there are a lot of people that it already feels like they’re panicking.”
Rittenhouse added teenagers often stop in later in the afternoon to snag a grab-and-go meal and appreciate the fact that they’re available.
“We partner with the school on a lot of things, so it was kind of a gimme,” he said. “We’re always here so it just works out well.”
Families may register for meals by emailing potchild@pottsvillelibrary.org with the name and age of each child, and what day and time they will be attending.
The Hazleton Area School District’s Seamless Summer Food Service Program provides free, nutritious lunches to all children 18 and under from Monday through Thursday through Aug. 6 at most sites, said Mitchell Milbrand, lead director of food and nutrition for the Nutrition Group at the Hazleton Area School District
“There is definitely still a need,” Milbrand said. “We serve quite a bit of meals at numerous sites. A lot of these students rely on meals all year at the school — a free breakfast or free lunch. With the summer program, they can go out to a park, or Maple Manor, and get a hot meal. I think it’s very important.”
The Greater Wyoming Valley Area YMCA serves about 12,000 meals each summer through its Food & Fun at the Park program, said Lennae Pellam, director of the program. In addition to four parks in Wilkes-Barre, one in Duryea and one in Luzerne — through Aug. 21 — the YCMA also provides noncongregate meals at the White Haven Area Community Library and Newport Twp. Little League Field, she added.
Noncongregate meals are food distributions that are consumed off-site rather than eaten together in a supervised location.
“Demand had definitely increased,” Pellam said. “With the noncongregate meals, we’re distributing five lunches and five breakfasts to each family every week. We’re serving 2,000 meals every Monday night, and that’s not including what we serve daily out of the parks.”
FREE MEAL SITES/TIMES THROUGHOUT NEPA
SCRANTON
•Connell Pool, 800 Gibbons St., Monday-Friday, noon-1:45 p.m.
•Fellows Park, 1000 Fellows St., Monday-Friday, noon-1:45 p.m.
•McDade Pool, 1 Bald Mountain Road, Monday-Friday, noon-1:45 p.m.
•Novembrino Splash Pad, South 10th Avenue & Washburn Street, Monday-Friday, noon-1:45 p.m.
•Weston Field Pool/Park, 982 Providence Road, Monday-Friday, noon-1:45 p.m.
•Weston Park/Pool, 100 Spring St., Monday-Friday, noon-1:45 p.m.
•Valley View Terrace, 950 Pear St., Wednesdays and Fridays, 10 a.m.-noon.
WILKES-BARRE (all sites 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.)
•McGlynn Learning Center at Mineral Springs Village, 233 Eastview Drive
•McGlynn Learning Center at Boulevard Townhomes, 68 Midland Court
•Weissman Playground, 15 Mundy St.
•Coal Street Park, 38 Coal St.
DURYEA (11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.)
•Healey Park, 398 Foote Ave.
LUZERNE (11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.)
•Louis Falcone Park, 468 Charles St.
GREATER HAZLETON (Monday-Thursday)
•8 a.m.-9:30 a.m. (breakfast) and 11:15 a.m.-noon (lunch), through Aug. 6.
Maple Manor, 1700 W. 22nd St., Hazle Twp.
•8-9 a.m. (breakfast) and 11:30 a.m.-noon (lunch), through Aug. 6.
Hazleton Art League, 31 W. Broad St., Hazleton
•11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (breakfast), through Aug. 6
Cyber Academy at Laurel Mall, 106 Laurel Mall Road, Hazleton
•10-10:40 a.m. (lunch), through July 31
Whispering Willow Park, 334 S. Main St., Conyngham
•10:45-11:30 a.m. (lunch), through Aug. 6
Freeland Village, 61 Evancho Circle, Freeland
Beech Street Park, 200 block of Beech Street, Hazleton
James Street Playground, 700 block of James Street, Hazleton
•11 a.m.-noon (lunch), through July 31
Butler Twp. Recreation Center, 411 W. Butler Drive, Drums
•11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (lunch), through Aug. 6
Nuremburg Town Park, 185 Mahanoy St., Nuremburg
•11:45 a.m.-12:30 p.m. (lunch), through Aug. 6
Freeland Park, 600 Front St., Freeland
East End Park and Playground, 100 block of Mill Street, Hazleton
Hazleton Garden Apartments, 901 Hazleton Apts., Hazle Twp.