CLEVELAND HEIGHTS -- The Cleveland Heights-University Heights Public Library has launched a summer lunch program for anyone age 18 or younger.
Free lunches are served between noon and 1 p.m. every weekday through Aug. 20 at the Lee Road Library, 2345 Lee Road.
Steve Haynie, the library’s young adult services coordinator, began working with the Cleveland Foodbank in the spring to set up the program. He said it was an ideal solution to a community need.
“There is a large portion of our population that relies on the schools to provide lunch on a daily basis,” Haynie said in a press release. “We wanted to fill that summertime lunch void and provide a literacy component at the same time.”
The turnout has been “overwhelming,” Haynie said last month.
“In the first three days, we have served nearly 200 lunches, and we are expecting increasing numbers as word of the program spreads,” he said.
Through the Cleveland Foodbank, the library has the ability to serve as many as 250 people and welcomes all youth in the community to attend. No registration is required.
“Certainly the free meals are the most critical aspect,” Library Director Nancy Levin said. “But equally important is the educational component which is offered.”
Library staff members have developed a variety of passive and active programs around the lunch schedule, Levin said.
Displays with books and games are available, and library staff and volunteers are also on hand to interact with the children on a more casual, one-on-one basis.
“The internal response to this program has been wonderful,” Levin said. “Staff and volunteers have been eager to get involved and support it.
“It’s a true testament to how this community feels about its children.”
Call (216) 932-3600, Ext. 292.
Contact Wittenberg at
(216) 986-5896 or ewittenberg@sunnews.com