Piqua Salvation Army ready for summer feeding program

PIQUA — The Salvation Army in Piqua is getting ready to start its 25th year of a program geared to help feed kids in need during the Summer.

It started in 1996 by Salvation Army Major Margaret Starnes, and her husband Ron Starnes, because Margaret remembered the struggle her own family encountered growing up in making ends meet and having enough food over the summer months when school was not in session.

25 years later its not only become a staple of the Piqua community but it’s helped other communities establish and grow similar programs.

“I think that because how they have seen and heard about it, talked about in Piqua, some other communities have picked it up throughout the years and its doing well in those communities as well,” Jody Kramer, a Major with the Salvation Army, said. “The program started in Piqua in 1996 has really been a catalyst for a lot of those other communities to start a summer feeding program.”

Kramer said she’s worked for the Salvation Army in many different cities and several different states but nowhere had a program like this.

Starting June 1st the Salvation Army will be providing hot meals to kids at nine different locations every weekday, except July 5th, around lunch time. The program runs through September 4th.

On Fridays kids also get food to take home to help feed them during the weekends.

During the month of May Piqua schools collected food items to be donated to the Salvation Army’s program.

“So amazing of how the people in this community just step up to make it happen year after year after year,” Kramer said. “I believe that’s because the people in Piqua really care about their neighbors.”

The daily schedule will be as follows with times being approximate (within a few minutes) and no appointments are necessary. 10:55 at Paris Court, 11:10 Shawnee (Central Baptist), 11:20 Corner of W. Grant and Adams, 11:30 The Salvation Army (129 S. Wayne St.), 11:40 Kitt St., 12:00 Washington Commons, 12:10 Piqua Village, 12:50 Kiwanis Park, and 1:10 Corner of E. North and Race Streets.

The Salvation Army is still looking for volunteers to help with the program. Anyone looking for more information or would like to donate or volunteer should call the Piqua Salvation Army officer at (937) 773-7563.

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