LEAP offers meals for local youth

Bigfork Eagle

Along with its camps this summer, the LEAP after-school program has something else to offer local youth — food.

LEAP was approved to sponsor Montana's Simplified Summer Food Program to provide free breakfast and lunch to local children at three sites in Bigfork.

The program is targeted at providing food for low-income children 18 and under when school is not in session who might otherwise go hungry.

To qualify, the area had to have at least 50 percent or more of the children eligible for free or reduced-price school meals.

Since the Bigfork School District met that requirement during the 2009-10 school year, that made it possible for LEAP to apply for the program.

Meals are served at Crossroads Christian Fellowship, located at 7465 Montana Highway 35, the Bigfork Playhouse Children's Theatre Performing Arts Center at 850 Grand Ave., and Sliter Park in downtown Bigfork. Breakfast is from 8:30 a.m. to 9:15 a.m. and lunch is from 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.

"It's been very successful," food manager Stephanie Lepinski said while serving breakfast Tuesday.

According to organizers, the program is under utilized. In Montana, only 4,700 of out 40,000 children who receive free and reduced-price meals during the school year continue to receive meals during the summer months.

LEAP received also $15,000 from the Montana Office of Public Instruction and the Department of Health and Human Services to provide summer activities to the community to keep children learning and safe when school is out.

Children age kindergarten through seventh grade are welcome to participate in these activities.

Camps run daily from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. from June 14 through Aug. 20. All campers must be registered by a parent or guardian.

For more information, call 837-LEAP.