During the school year, many students rely on the breakfast and lunch provided by cafeterias all throughout the city. According to Feeding America, these meals are sometimes the only food they get each day.
Their stats show that one in five kids face hunger in Arizona every day.
Luckily, districts like Tucson Unified School District (TUSD) are providing free meals for students this summer.
It’s not just for students either — all kids are welcome.
Tucson Unified School District
TUSD says they will serve around 1,000 free meals a day across at least 100 of their participating locations. The district’s free meal program began on Wednesday, May 29 while other non-school sites will begin on Monday, June 3.
All of the free summer meal locations can be found at meals.tusd1.org.
Amphitheater Public Schools
The Amphitheater Public Schools is offering free meals to all children under the age of 18 from now until Thursday, June 20. Breakfast is offered from 7:45 – 9 a.m. and lunch is from 11 a.m. – 12:30 p.m. on Monday – Thursday.
Follow Amphitheater Public Schools on Facebook for the meal locations.
Marana Unified School District
MUSD is offering a couple of options for local kids this summer.
First, the district is offering breakfast and lunch at multiple of their campuses in the town — the latest date for free meals is Friday, July 26. They have the full list of locations and times online.
Secondly, the Marana Cares Mobile will be zippin’ around this summer and parking at two different locations. The mobile cafeteria is serving now until Friday, July 26 at Picture Rocks Fire Department (11 a.m. – noon)(7341 N. Sandario Rd.) and the Marana Domestic Water Improvement District (12:30 – 1:30 p.m.)(16560 W. El Tiro Rd.).
The Marana Cares Mobile is also active during other times of the school year.
Check out our 2023 article “Marana Cares Mobile Offers Free Meals for Students During Breaks.”
Free Summer Meals Recap
- Tucson Unified School District’s FREE meals
- Amphitheater Public Schools’ FREE meals
- Marana Unified School District FREE meals
For more information about other free meal programs, visit azhealthzone.org.
Article written by:
Matt Sterner
More about MattAt a very young age, Matt Sterner was gifted with the artistic ability to masterfully roll a burrito to the highest of standards, but the wrapped medley of delicious innards wasn’t his first love. Matt’s first true love was a combination of reading, writing, and creating. He grew up reading comics, the ingredients list of his shampoo and conditioner bottles, choose-your-own-adventure books, and the Scrabble dictionary — something he found useful when challenging his grandmother to a game.
He attended college at New Mexico State University and graduated with a degree in Digital Filmmaking. One of his favorite classes was screenwriting because he became responsible for the story’s birth before it came to life on-screen. After school, Matt took on numerous positions at a local television station in Tucson. From dealing out stories about heartbreak to producing “fluffier” content for a lifestyle broadcast, he learned what it takes to adapt to the many emotions the world of media can stir. Since 2017, Matt has dabbled in the culinary world of Tucson as well as San Diego, California from time to time.
If you’re in the mood for strange stories, head over to his pride and joy, wonkytimes.com. And in case you’re curious — yes, after all of this time, he still manages to roll a killer burrito.
