How Come Every Time I'm In the Kitchen...

Dallas ISD offers free summer meals at bus stops across the district
USDA provides a site finder to locate no-cost summer meal sites
North Texas Food Bank and local organizations offer broader food assistance

Radio One Dallas Day of Giving — Source: Reagan Elam / Reagan Elam-relam@radio-one.com

DFW Summer Food Resources for Kids

School’s out, but the need for meals doesn’t take a break. For families across DFW looking for help feeding kids this summer, there are several free and low-cost resources worth sharing.

Dallas ISD is again helping lead the way with its free summer food bus tour, which offers meals to kids and teens at designated stops across the district. Dallas ISD also notes that families can text “Food” to 304-304 or call 211 for more information.

The USDA’s Summer Meals site is another great place to start when you’re looking for no-cost meals for kids during the summer. The program helps families find nearby summer meal sites, and the USDA says kids and teens 18 and under can get meals and snacks at no cost at participating locations.

You can also use the USDA’s Summer Meals Site Finder to search by location and find meal sites, hours, and contact information. The site finder currently includes Texas, and the USDA also recommends calling the National Hunger Hotline at 1-866-348-6479 for immediate help.

FoodFinder is another helpful tool for locating nearby food pantries and meal resources. It’s especially useful for families who may need food support beyond summer meal sites. Food assistance directories like this can make it easier to find help close to home.

Other helpful DFW resources

North Texas Food Bank is a major local resource for families needing food support, and its child programs page points families toward summer meal options and district-specific resources across North Texas, including Dallas ISD, Fort Worth ISD, Arlington ISD, Frisco ISD, Plano ISD, and Denton County.

United Way of Metropolitan Dallas also keeps a vetted food assistance list that includes local and regional support options, plus links to broader help tools like findhelp.org and the North Texas Food Bank food assistance page.

The City of Dallas Community Care & Empowerment office also shares a broad list of food-assistance resources, including North Texas Food Bank, Catholic Charities, Dallas Salvation Army, Dallas College Community Pantry, and other local pantry and distribution options.

In Fort Worth, children 18 and under can receive free, nutritious meals and snacks at dozens of locations across the city during the summer through the Texas Department of Agriculture’s Summer Meals Program. No income verification, registration, or identification is required. Simply text “FOOD” or “COMIDA” to 877877 to get the nearest summer meal locations texted directly to your phone.

City of Fort Worth Community Centers are also hosting through the Fort Worth Parks and Receation Department: Summer Food Service Program :

Greenbriar Community Center (Snacks provided: Mon–Fri, 3:00–4:30 p.m.)
Handley Meadowbrook Community Center (Snacks provided: Mon–Fri, 3:00–5:00 p.m.)
Highland Hills Community Center (Snacks provided: Mon–Fri, 3:00–4:00 p.m.)
MLK Community Center (Snacks provided: Mon–Fri, 2:00–3:00 p.m.)