Wednesday Journal of Oak Park & River Forest: Make a call for free school meals

Letter to the Editor by Bri Kellogg

In Illinois, 315,000 children experience food insecurity. In a state that champions human rights and robust support systems, this should be unacceptable. We should be doing everything we can to ensure that kids have enough food, and there are practical, effective ways to make this happen. One of those ways is to provide free, healthy, nutritious meals at our schools.

I’m a registered dietitian and team manager working at Beyond Hunger, a nonprofit organization in Oak Park and the Austin neighborhood of Chicago that provides hunger relief through food pantry and other services. Every day, I see families struggling with food insecurity. The rising cost of living and decades-high rent burdens contribute to this need. These families are doing everything they can to feed their kids, and so are we. But we can only do so much. Our resources, like theirs, are constrained. But we all know no child should go hungry.

That’s where healthy school meals can help. Not only has this model proven to have tremendous positive results for children — including better physical health and the ability to learn at school — but it also helps their families, who can save between $640 and $1,200 per child each year. This will alleviate burdens on countless families and contribute to a brighter future for our children.

In 2023, Illinois took a significant step forward with the Healthy School Meals for All Bill, a testament to the strong, bipartisan support it garnered. However, this legislation has yet to receive the necessary funding to make it a reality.

Now more than ever, we need to unite and call on our legislators to include funding for this crucial work in this year’s budget. Contact our legislators and encourage them to support SB3247 and HB4785 to fully reimburse school lunches in Illinois.

Let’s show our children that we stand with them.

Bri Kellogg
Registered Dietitian Nutritionist, LDN, DCN
Oak Park