A Taste of the Lunch Bus: The End

The summer has rolled by with increasing speed this year; June slipped almost unnoticed into July, July scurried into August, and it is now September and children are preparing to go back to school, if they haven’t returned already. The days of dancing in fire hydrants, catching fireflies and chasing the ice cream truck are numbered, and so are my days aboard the Lunch Bus. Today is the final day of the Lunch Bus City Route. The South Suburban Route ended two weeks ago, and the desk my fellow intern used to occupy has sat empty for the past 10 days reminding me that soon my papers will be cleared off and my desk will await the new Lunch Bus intern next year.

I have definitely gotten my own taste of the hunger and nutrition problems in the city this summer. I remember children like Jerome Fears at Back of the Yards who told me all about the new McFlurry he tried, but asked what a plum was, and Bruce Thomas whose favorite restaurant is Burger King, but had never tried bell peppers before. As an intern, I often worried about the day to day: whether we had chocolate milk, how many meals I could give out at each site and if kids would enjoy the food that day. But as the summer comes to an end, I realize we did more than just hand out lunches; we gave mothers a chance to save some much needed money, and fed kids at least one nutritious meal per day.

Each site has a different reaction to the announcement that Friday will be the final day. The kids at the Wabash YMCA asked if I was going to bring cake. At Back of the Yards it came as no surprise, as they thought the last day would be a few weeks ago. And at Our Lady of Good Counsel, the Castaneda family with eight kids went back to school on Aug. 29, so they said their goodbyes last week and asked if I would be back next year.

It will, in fact, be a new intern as I am heading down to Washington DC to take grad school classes and work in Public Affairs for the Department of Transportation. And, although someone new will be handing out sandwiches and checking off meal counts next year, I will never forget my summer on the Lunch Bus.

Allison Lantero is the City Route Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Lunch Bus returned in June, expanding its city and South Suburban routes to include a total of 15 sites across Cook County. Throughout the summer months the program will distribute approximately 15,000 meals reimbursed by the Illinois Board of Education. With the help of Food Depository interns and volunteers, the Lunch Bus visits sites in underserved neighborhoods to deliver healthy food directly to children. The Food Depository identified priority areas for the Lunch Bus based on the Running on Empty study of child hunger, released in 2010.

A Taste of the Lunch Bus: Little Helpers

Last week, the Lunch Bus served 112 kids at the Miami Park site alone. So far, that is the record number served at any site on the City Suburban route—and is a milestone for the program. Some sites such as the Salvation Army in Little Village, has quadrupled in size since June, with more than 60 children served every day. With numbers this high, it can be difficult for me to enforce the rule that children must eat on site and keep the area clean, while also handing out lunches.

Recently, I haven’t had to worry about enforcing these rules alone. The children who visit the Lunch Bus regularly are incredibly willing to help. In fact, the minute we drive up to St. Pancratius, a group of kids asks to help unload the lunches. Whether they are naturally helpful, or just really hungry, their offers are much appreciated. Later, as I am packing up to leave and collecting garbage, my helpers will often spring into action again. This is especially noticeable at Miami Park, where Michelle and her sister Jasmine will jump up and climb under playground equipment to grab trash I hadn’t even seen. My helpers make my job much easier, but I am not the only one the kids assist.

At Back of the Yards, I noticed Rori would stop at Asia and Daeveon’s house before coming over to the park. Asia and “Dae Dae” are too young to cross the street by themselves, but Rori makes sure that the siblings get their lunches every day.

Many siblings help their younger brothers and sisters write their names if they are too young to use a pen. Christian is one such older brother at Miami Park. After he writes his and his siblings’ names, he often comes and sits in the grass by my table. When there is a long line, it’s difficult to hand out lunches and keep tabs on the exit. Suddenly, Christian will be at my side. “Their trying to leave,” he whispers, pointing to a group of kids sneaking out the exit. I explain they have to eat lunch at the park, and they turn back to the benches. When I asked him why he was helping me enforce the rules he said, as if it were obvious, “Because I want the Lunch Bus to keep coming for everybody.”

Allison Lantero is the City Route Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Lunch Bus returned in June, expanding its city and South Suburban routes to include a total of 15 sites across Cook County. Throughout the summer months the program will distribute approximately 25,000 meals reimbursed by the Illinois Board of Education. With the help of Food Depository interns and volunteers, the Lunch Bus visits sites in underserved neighborhoods to deliver healthy food directly to children. The Food Depository identified priority areas for the Lunch Bus based on the Running on Empty study of child hunger, released in 2010.

Taste of the Lunch Bus: Wabash YMCA

A traditional lunch begins at noon, and that is when the Lunch Bus rolls into the parking lot beside the Wabash YMCA near U.S. Cellular Field. We set up under a small tree in the middle of the lot, and wait for the children to come running down the street. They come from houses in the neighborhood, a summer school program down the street, and sometimes even the YMCA itself.

Today, some of our first customers were the Willis kids, 5-year-old Brandon and 8-year-old Carlyn, who always sprint down the sidewalk, regardless of whether or not they are late. Brandon usually brings his action figures, and, like many of the other kids, celebrates the days chocolate milk is on the menu. After visiting the Lunch Bus the first few days of summer, they soon invited their neighbors to join them.

Bruce Thomas, age 3, cannot write his name, so his sister Anaya comes to the front of the line to help, then returns to her spot. Bruce takes his lunch at sits behind me, and every once in a while I will get a tug on my shirt. Looking up at me with his big brown eyes, Bruce asks, “Can you do this for me?” and offers me a bag of animal crackers or a package of strawberries. Young Reggenia, his sister, doesn’t know her last name, but does know she loves applesauce. She loves it so much that she dances around with the cup, and about half the container winds up on her shirt by the end of lunch.

A day-care program started stopping by the Lunch Bus with a mini-van full of kids ranging in age from 2 to 13. The oldest is Jake who is very selective in his food choices. Once he sees what the lunch is for the day, he conducts an auction of the things he doesn’t like, such as milk, to trade for what he does, like apples or Baked Doritos. “He’s going to be quite the businessman,” one of my volunteer drivers remarked.

Recently, the Thomas family returned from a trip to visit family. The minute they saw the Lunch Bus they rushed down the sidewalk to tell me they were back. Bruce then looked up at me and asked, “So what’s for lunch?”

Allison Lantero is the City Route Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Lunch Bus returned in June, expanding its city and South Suburban routes to include a total of 15 sites across Cook County. Throughout the summer months the program will distribute approximately 25,000 meals reimbursed by the Illinois Board of Education. With the help of Food Depository interns and volunteers, the Lunch Bus visits sites in underserved neighborhoods to deliver healthy food directly to children. The Food Depository identified priority areas for the Lunch Bus based on the Running on Empty study of child hunger, released in 2010.

A Taste of the Lunch Bus: Miami Park

At 2:10 p.m., Miami Park in Little Village is at its busiest: kids swinging or running around the playground, mothers sitting on benches, watching and chatting. However, they are all waiting for the arrival of the Greater Chicago Food Depository Lunch Bus. When we arrive, there is already a line formed with just enough space for me and my sign-in table at the front.

The ride to Miami Park is often interesting as the community has many practices I had never seen before. Households have yard sales all week long by hanging clothing on their picket fences and the streets are lined with umbrella-covered stands selling fruit and “chicharonnes.” A few weeks ago, when the weather was sweltering, we drove through fire hydrants spraying full blast. Almost all the children who came to the Lunch Bus were dripping.

Miami Park is one of our busiest sites with upwards of 65 kids served each day. In fact, on Tuesday August 16th, 112 children received lunches at this site. When I make the announcement that they must eat their meal at the park, I have to do it in both Spanish and English, as the majority of the population is Hispanic. The children all sign their own names, which is entertaining at times. “No, I can do it!” little ones often shout before a parent or sibling can write their name. The other children in line wait patiently as each makes his or her mark, and often ask me questions.

“What is the food today?”

“Como estás?”

“How many boxes do you have?”

“Como te llamas?”

This last question was posed by Andy, a 3-year-old who always seems to have just come from playing in a fire hydrant. At first I tell him my name is Allison, but he can’t seem to pronounce it. So I say instead that it is Alicia, and he grins widely. The next day as we round the corner all I hear is “Alicia! Hola Alicia!”

Allison Lantero is the City Route Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Lunch Bus returned in June, expanding its city and South Suburban routes to include a total of 15 sites across Cook County. Throughout the summer months the program will distribute approximately 20,000 meals reimbursed by the Illinois Board of Education. With the help of Food Depository interns and volunteers, the Lunch Bus visits sites in underserved neighborhoods to deliver healthy food directly to children. The Food Depository identified priority areas for the Lunch Bus based on the Running on Empty study of child hunger, released in 2010.

A Taste of the Lunch Bus: Back of the Yards Park

Under a viaduct on 49th Street and through a mural-painted tunnel, the Lunch Bus travels to the Back of the Yards Park each morning at 11:15 a.m. The area is almost always silent—there are no children in the park and empty swings sway in the breeze. It is the slowest stop on the route, but its growth during the course of the summer is what keeps me hopeful.

Nearby paintings and billboards should have tipped me off to why the park is deserted. One image of candles stands out with the message “Someone was killed here.” Another reads: “No guns, children playing.” Recently a city worker cleaning up the park told us about the multiple gangs on either side of the bridge. It was no wonder that when six-year-old Ganiyra first came to the Lunch Bus, her eyes widened when I told her she had to eat her meal in the park. “But my mom doesn’t like us coming here,” she explained. “This is the shooter park.”

The Lunch Bus has helped lift this stigma this summer. Asia sometimes stays with her grandmother across the street and will peek out the window when the Lunch Bus pulls up, calling to her brother Daeveon, while hurrying over to ask if we have chocolate milk today. Rori, who lives a few doors down, recently offered me a small lanyard keychain. “I made this for you,” she said with a grin.

The park is still empty when the Lunch Bus arrives, but by the time we leave for the next stop, there are children laughing on the benches, swapping juice for animal crackers and giving us a glimpse of the park’s true potential.

Allison Lantero is the City Route Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Lunch Bus returned in June, expanding its city and South Suburban routes to include a total of 15 sites across Cook County. Throughout the summer months the program will distribute approximately 15,000 meals reimbursed by the Illinois Board of Education. With the help of Food Depository interns and volunteers, the Lunch Bus visits sites in underserved neighborhoods to deliver healthy food directly to children. The Food Depository identified priority areas for the Lunch Bus based on the Running on Empty study of child hunger, released in 2010.

A taste of the Lunch Bus: Our Lady of Good Counsel

On a shady corner besides the Church of Our Lady of Good Counsel in McKinley Park, the streets are quiet and lined with well-kept houses with the odd bicycle or scooter parked outside. It is here that the Lunch Bus stops at 12:45 p.m. each weekday to provide meals for the children in the area. At first it was the slowest stop, with just one little girl from across the street coming out each day. Gaby and I would have lunch together.

Two weeks in, word finally got out. One family with nine children began arriving each day in a large black van. The family would pile out and, after politely accepting their lunches, would sit together on the steps near the church to eat. Then a babysitter brought the two children she watches, Mia and Liam. Mia is two years old and learning both Spanish and English. “Manana!” she says as she rolls away in her stroller each afternoon. Ricardo and his sister Nubia also come often, always smiling and asking me how I am.

Lastly, the Napoleon family became Lunch Bus regulars. Each day Alyssa and her brothers, Jared and Jaden, sprint down the block when they see the Lunch Bus. On July 22, lunch included watermelon and celery. The Napoleons were excited for the fresh produce. “They love fruit,” their mother explained. “Once every two weeks the local grocery store has a 10 for $10 sale on fruit, and they keep track of when it is for me.” Alyssa smiled at me with her watermelon-juice lips, “Will there be more food like this next week?”

Allison Lantero is the City Route Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Lunch Bus returned in June, expanding its city and South Suburban routes to include a total of 15 sites across Cook County. Throughout the summer months the program will distribute approximately 15,000 meals reimbursed by the Illinois Board of Education. With the help of Food Depository interns and volunteers, the Lunch Bus visits sites in underserved neighborhoods to deliver healthy food directly to children. The Food Depository identified priority areas for the Lunch Bus based on the Running on Empty study of child hunger, released in 2010.

A Taste of the Lunch Bus: Observations from A Lunch Bus Intern

When working with kids, you never know what to expect. As a former waitress I have witnessed everything from temper tantrums over chocolate milk to children who seemed like miniature adults. When I was offered the position of Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository this summer, I had no idea what to expect. I had fed kids before, but not kids who may not have had breakfast; not kids who might not eat lunch at all without me.

Many children in the city go without regular meals when school is out for the summer. Maybe they are home alone all day and do not have food in the house. Maybe their parents are out of work and can only provide a meal or two per day. Whatever the reason, no child is at fault for his or her hunger. It was this that drew me to the Lunch Bus. Recently graduated from a university committed to a tradition of community service, I loved the idea of sharing my time and energy with these kids.

On my first day, the first four stops were very slow, some with no children at all. I was devastated and confused. Where were all the children? What was the point of spending my summer giving out meals when no one even showed up? I got my answer at the sixth stop. As we rounded the corner to Miami Park in Little Village, there they were. Droves of children were playing on the playground, but the moment they saw the Lunch Bus with the Food Depository logo, a cheer went up and a line immediately formed. The children were all smiles as they scribbled their names on the sign-in sheet. No one fought in line, and they were excited to try the new food. As we prepared to travel to our next stop, Ms. Dixon, the volunteer driver helping me that day, turned to me and said, “I told you they’d be there. They’ll all be like that pretty soon.”

Allison Lantero is the City Route Lunch Bus intern at the Greater Chicago Food Depository. The Lunch Bus returned in June, expanding its city and South Suburban routes to include a total of 15 sites across Cook County. Throughout the summer months the program will distribute approximately 15,000 meals reimbursed by the Illinois Board of Education. With the help of Food Depository interns and volunteers, the Lunch Bus visits sites in underserved neighborhoods to deliver healthy food directly to children. The Food Depository identified priority areas for the Lunch Bus based on the Running on Empty study of child hunger, released in 2010.

Commission to End Hunger kicks off its statewide listening tour

In 2010, the Commission to End Hunger was appointed by Gov. Pat Quinn with the mission of developing a two-year plan to end hunger in Illinois. The Commission is responsible for developing this action plan, reviewing its progress, and ensuring cross-collaboration among government entities and the community. Comprised of legislators and community leaders who are committed to this mission, the Commission is conducting a listening tour this summer and fall, to learn firsthand how hunger is affecting men, women and children across Illinois. The Commission is co-chaired by Kate Maehr, executive director and CEO of the Greater Chicago Food Depository.

The Illinois Commission to End Hunger began its statewide listening tour on July 10 in Rantoul, a farming community surrounded by the picturesque cornfields of central Illinois. The Commission’s goal: uncovering (and eventually correcting) the crises of food insecurity and hunger facing migrant and seasonal farm workers.

Each summer, waves of farm workers arrive in this once-thriving town, which has struggled to maintain a dwindling population after the local Air Force base closed in the mid-1990s. Today, Rantoul looks like so many other American towns: Its film set-ready central business district, lined with the shells of small, independent shops, is all but abandoned.

The migrant workers who arrive in Rantoul are hired by local farmers to de-tassel corn or handle other crops. They work long days in unforgiving weather conditions, and frequently wait weeks for their first paychecks, a lapse that makes it nearly impossible to feed their families.

Five of the 21 state-appointed commissioners were on hand Sunday to hear from members of the Illinois Migrant Council, an advocacy group started in 1966 to address the health, employment, housing and educational needs of the state’s estimated 30,000 seasonal farm workers. Eloy Salazar, the group’s executive director, spoke passionately about the need for increased funding for food programs and the workers’ daily struggles to survive.

“Most farm workers have to really stretch their pay and their food just to get to the next paycheck,” Salazar said. “They choose between fuel to get to work and food to feed their families. That’s the experience of many workers. And in the extreme cases, where there’s not enough work, and no pay, the children in these families will go hungry.” Long-term inadequate nutrition can lead to serious, long-term health problems, he said – which go untreated due to lack of care options, often derailing work during the crucial seasonal window.

The Commission will present its reports and updates on progress to the governor and General Assembly annually, beginning in March 2012. Be sure to check back in with the Food Depository blog as it chronicles the Commission's listening tour and for the dates and locations of the tour's Cook County stops.

Lobbying for hunger relief in Illinois: Day Two at the Feeding Illinois Conference and Lobby Day in Springfield

Everyone was up bright and early the next morning, excited to meet with legislators and tell the stories of their communities. Participants met in smaller, two- to five-person groups by the legislative district in which their program is located. Groups reviewed their meeting schedule and talking points over breakfast.

In light of the budget crisis in Illinois, lobbyists aimed to raise awareness about legislation that would benefit Illinois’ hungry families without any added financial burden to the state, such as inviting legislators to join the Anti-Hunger Caucus and support a bill that would help divert more eggs—a nutrient rich, but rarely donated, item—to Illinois food banks.

I asked Oak Park River Forest Food Pantry, a member of the Food Depository, if I could tag along with their group for their first meeting of the day with their representative, Sen. Don Harmon (D-Oak Park).

As I sat down with the group, pantry executive director Kathy Russell continued down the list of meetings planned for the day. Kathy and her team had done their homework on each and knew what West Side neighborhoods they represented and how many clients the pantry served from each area. When asked if they had any specific stories from their pantry to share with legislators who had not seen the pantry in action, Michele Zurakowski nodded.

“We stayed open the night of the blizzard,” said Michele, director of operations at the pantry. “We served 15 families that night, including a working mother of five. She was stressed out that schools would be closed for the next two days and her children wouldn’t be able to get school lunches so she had to come up with enough food for 30 meals. It was one of those times where you realize this is why we are here.”

“If people are coming to pantry in a blizzard, they really need the help,” Kathy added.

Lobbying for hunger relief in Illinois: Day One at the Feeding Illinois Conference and Lobby Day in Springfield

Last week, more than 60 Greater Chicago Food Depository staff, volunteers and member agency representatives traveled to Springfield for the two-day Second Annual Feeding Illinois Anti-Hunger Conference and Lobby Day. We were joined by hunger-relief supporters from all eight Feeding Illinois member food banks, as well as other food pantries, soup kitchens and shelters from across Illinois. Our charge was to learn more about legislative issues affecting hunger relief and raise awareness about the thousands of men, woman and children that struggle with hunger every day in our state.

To kick things off, participants gathered at the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Hotel and Conference Center for a panel discussion covering the ongoing efforts of federal, state, private and community organizations to fight hunger, and what to expect during meetings with legislators the following day. Panelists included: Sarah Coffer, vice president of United Way of McLean County; Sen. Don Harmon (D-Oak Park); Grace Hou, assistant secretary of the Illinois Department of Human Services; Andy Kulczycki, director of Community Service Center of Northern Champaign County; Tracy Smith, state director of Feeding Illinois; and Jason Wetzel, director of public affairs and government relations of Walmart. The keynote was given by Jerry Stermer of the office of the governor and provided background on the state budget deficit and the financial challenges facing the state.

Below are just a few snippets from the panel discussion:

“Our staff was struck by how many clients mentioned how many phone calls, how many contacts they had to go through to get someone to answer their questions [in regards to SNAP, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program],” Andy Kulczycki, director of the Community Service Center of Northern Champaign County.

“Everyone is absolutely necessary to ending hunger. Community and state agencies can’t do it alone, legislators can’t do it alone, philanthropies can’t do it alone. But we can do it together. The question is whether or not we will,”Grace Hou, assistant secretary of the Illinois Department of Human Services.

“There is an ongoing debate on what the overall size and scope of government should be. But if government is not instrumental in ensuring that no one goes to bed hungry, we’re doing it wrong,” Sen. Don Harmon (D-Oak Park).

At the conclusion of the panel, participants chose break-out sessions to attend, each focusing on a specific topic. I stopped by the “Spotlight on Agencies,” led by Bob Koenegstein, director of the Chester Area Christian Food Pantry, a member of the St. Louis Area Foodbank. Bob shared a new initiative of his pantry, a monthly mobile “food fair.” The group, which included several other food pantries and food banks, discussed best practices of their mobile programs and there was a lively discussion on the logistics of allowing clients to choose their own items and bypass food they may not use or need. Several pantries shared that having a choice gave clients dignity and eliminated waste with everyone only taking the food they needed.

Next I joined a session covering SNAP and how agencies can connect their clients with these federal benefits. Pastor Sandra Gillespie of Food Depository member agency Chosen Tabernacle Food Pantry spoke about her experience with the Food Depository SNAP Outreach team that visits the pantry once a month to assist clients with the 11-page application form and to answer questions about the application process.

Pastor Gillespie explained that she decided to learn more about SNAP as a way to help her clients regain a sense of dignity. “[SNAP] is an opportunity [for the client] to do some things on their own. It allows them to go to the store and get what they need,” she said. “It’s about making a difference in the lives of our clients.”

To cap off the day, participants were welcomed to the governor’s mansion to recognize three hunger-relief advocates: the 2011 Legislator of the Year Sen. Harmon; Brenda Hanbury, retiring chief of the Bureau of Homeless Services and Supportive Housing, Illinois Department of Human Services; and Dennis Smith, retiring president and CEO of Northern Illinois Food Bank. Watch their acceptance speeches below.