Second Harvest Food Bank launches Kids Cafe at Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana

MEDIA ALERT

‘Kids Cafe’ Offers Boys & Girls Healthy Afterschool Snacks

Second Harvest Food Bank Launches Latest Kids Cafe at Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana

WHAT: Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County joins with the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana to celebrate its latest Kids Cafe opening. Kids Cafe provides fresh fruits and vegetables, protein and dairy options to children who may not otherwise have access to nutritious foods. The Kids Cafe program bridges the gap between meals and provides healthy choices to underserved children, as well as nutrition education activities. The Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana provides academic, physical fitness and enrichment programs to over 1,000 kids per day, including cooking and nutrition courses. Kids Cafe will tremendously enhance the programs already being run at the Club.

WHEN: Thursday, March 3, 2011 at 3:00 p.m.

WHERE: Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana, 950 Highland Street, Santa Ana, CA 92703

WHY: Approximately one in four children in Orange County is at risk of going hungry. Nearly half of public school kids rely on reduced or free school lunches for their major source of nutrition.

WHO: Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County and the Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana.

MEDIA NOTE: Photo and interview opportunities include:

• An estimated 130 children, ages 6-18 receive snack
• Robert Santana, BGCSA Chief Professional Officer
• Joe Schoeningh, Director, Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County

ABOUT: Since 2000, Kids Cafes have been providing healthy after-school snacks, summer meals and nutrition education to low-income children throughout Orange County. Second Harvest Food Bank partners with Boys & Girls Clubs, community centers, and other homework help centers within walking distance of underserved schools.

The Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana provides a positive, healthy learning environment for children in one of the most disadvantaged communities in the United States. Since 1954, the Club has brought stability to neighborhoods that have seen drugs, teen pregnancy and gang-related violence rock their foundations. With each year that passes, the Club curriculum takes progressively longer strides toward strengthening the academic aptitude, the physical fitness, the health awareness and the career ambitions of Santa Ana’s children, preparing them to graduate high school and become productive citizens. The Club operates out of its Main Club Complex, which includes classrooms, a technology center, a full-size gymnasium, a softball field, an organic garden, and a teen center, but also runs six satellite sites at area public schools. Through services provided at these sites, the Club reaches over 1,000 children each day and more than 2,700 children each year. Engaged, passionate, well-trained adults at each site provide monitored academic support, organized physical activities and lifeapplicable enrichment courses for every child.

CONTACTS: Second Harvest: Kathie Monroe, (949) 653-2900, ext. 154; cell: (714) 330-2848; kathie@feedoc.org
Boys & Girls Club of Santa Ana: Tim Hogan, 714-543-5129; cell: 804-370-9144; thogan@boysandgirlsclub.com

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