Children are especially vulnerable to issues of hunger and poverty. In the ten counties served by Feeding America Tampa Bay, more than 200,000 children under the age of 18 live in poverty. 
The Food Bank’s Kids Cafe program exists for them. Its purpose is to provide a hot, nutritious meal in a safe and accessible environment to children who are facing food insecurity. Feeding America Tampa Bay’s Kids Cafe initiative began in 1997, and today we operate 13 sites targeting low income neighborhoods in both rural and inner city communities.
Across these multiple sites, underprivileged children are served a late afternoon meal each day after school, totaling 5,000 meals weekly. The program also provides them with tutoring, nutrition education, school supply assistance, and hope.
It is understood that hunger affects a child’s concentration, overall health and development, school attendance and academic achievement. At Feeding America Tampa Bay, we have had the privilege of seeing these areas improve dramatically among the children we serve.
Partnerships with local Boys and Girls Clubs and churches provide the physical Kids Cafe sites. Kids Cafe however, is managed and supported as a program of Feeding America Tampa Bay, and it also procures most of its food directly from the Food Bank (Kids Cafe sometimes receives direct food donations from other community sources, as well). This enables the program to provide nutritious meals to food insecure children for about a dollar per child per day.
Kids Cafe Goals & Objectives
- Feed children at risk of hunger
- Provide nutrition education and tools at all sites
- Create awareness of childhood hunger through
special partnerships in the community
- Educate the public about childhood hunger solutions
For more information on how you can help feed hungry children and nourish their hope, contact the food bank's Child Nutrition Programs Manager, Carolyn Riggins, at 813.254.1190 ext. 205.