Georgia’s humid mornings and sudden summer storms signal more than just a change in weather. They also mark a season of rising pressure for families. With schools closed, many caregivers face higher childcare costs, increased food expenses, and the emotional weight of keeping kids safe and nourished.
In the Urban Recipe community, we see this social impact affecting not only our families with children, but our senior co-op members who care for their grandchildren during the summer months as well. A number of our members have reported an increase in their household size as their grandkids come to live with them. Other co-op members express the strain as they are not only feeding their own children, but neighborhood kids and friends who are around their house during the week. The financial and mental strain of this responsibility on our families is seen and felt across the board. Through co-ops each month, Urban Recipe supports approximately 300 households—over half of which include children—reaching around 400 kids every two weeks with nutritious food.
A child helps out at the International Community School co-op
In Fulton County, a meal is valued at $4.43. Without access to free school lunch and breakfasts, families are suddenly responsible for an additional cost valued at $45 a child every week. For families living paycheck to paycheck, this is a significant impact.
Thankfully, at Urban Recipe, we are able to increase food for families with children over the summer through the Georgia Nutritional Assistance Program (GNAP). As a partner of the Atlanta Community Food Bank, we are able to obtain high quality, nutritious food for families with kids. Since summertime began, we have distributed 3,954 lbs of food through the GNAP program, a $14,597 meal value.
Volunteers have been busy in the last two months, packing bags of frozen and non-perishable GNAP-designated food. Last week, our frozen bags were filled with 2 lbs of frozen veggies and approximately 6 lbs of meat (pork sausage patties, cornish hens, and ground chicken and turkey). Families also received non-perishable bags, filled to the brim with rice, grits, tuna, canned veggies, ramen, snacks, milk, and cereal. Families receive this on top of their regular food that they receive through food co-op: an assortment of non-perishable food, snacks, frozen proteins, veggies and breads, fresh produce, and household items.
A daughter of a Lake Forest Elementary School co-op member plays at the co-op meeting
Our co-op members step up in a big way to support their families. Every two weeks, all year long, they show up to co-ops – participating, leading, serving, and contributing to their co-op community. Even as budgets are tightened in the summer, we are grateful to see smiling faces at each of our ten co-ops, and rooms full of people eager to take ownership of their own food security.
Food security simply looks different in the summertime, and we are proud that we are able to adapt and find ways to support our co-op members through every season. We are always looking for volunteers and donors to partner with us in this mission. Donate now or sign up for a volunteer opportunity today.
