St. Louis, Mo:  Operation Food Search recently completed its eighth year as a sponsor of the Summer Food Service Program (SFSP), serving 89,341 meals throughout the summer at its mobile and stationary locations.  OFS provided an additional 600 family meal kits at its pop-up locations.

 

Mobile meal vans served locations throughout North City, North St. Louis County, South County and South St. Louis regions via three routes.  Stationary service was offered at two St. Charles City-County Library branches, nine St. Louis County Library branches, and three St. Louis Public Library branches.  For the first time, OFS conducted a summer pilot program in Jefferson and Warren counties.

 

OFS and community partners have served more than 350,000 meals since the program’s inception in 2012.  In addition to meal service, the program includes engaging activities such as a variety of games, arts, crafts, and STEM projects.

 

“Families experience a lack of meals during the summertime, and we work extremely hard to prevent this from happening,” said OFS’s Executive Director Kristen Wild.  “We have amazing partnerships throughout the St. Louis communities who join together to ensure children who live in food insecure households do not lag behind their peers when school starts up again.”

 

Founded in 1981, Operation Food Search (OFS) is a hunger relief organization that provides food and nutrition education.  With a strategic focus aimed at ending childhood hunger, OFS empowers families with a range of programs and services proven to reduce food insecurity and increase access to healthy and affordable food.  The agency helps feed more than 200,000 individuals on a monthly basis – one-third of which are children – through a network of 330 community partners in 31 Missouri and Illinois counties.