COVINGTON, Ky. — Local organizations are making plans to help those affected by new work requirements aimed at people who rely on SNAP benefits and Medicaid. Those changes are coming as a result of President Donald Trump's "Big Beautiful Bill" that he signed into law earlier this month.

The UMC Food Ministry is stepping up to the plate. There are talks of creating a community volunteer program to help those facing new work requirements.

UMC Food Ministry, a regional outreach of the United Methodist Church, has been a leader in feeding hungry kids in our region, operating through more than 300 sites in Northern Kentucky and Greater Cincinnati and serving over 2.6 million meals in the first nine months of 2020. The organization, a long-time OneSource Center consulting client, credits its strategic planning partnership with OneSource Center in helping it enhance its service model in an economically sustainable way and positioning the organization for long-term growth.

The Cincinnati & Hamilton County Public Library and UMC Food Ministry have partnered to hand out free meal boxes to children under 18 and young adults 19-21 in Individualized Education Programs.

The library and UMC typically offer free meals during the summer, but due to COVID-19 and the impact it is having on in-person learning — and access to school meals — for area students, the program has been extended and modified to feature meal boxes with seven dinners and seven snacks.

The Great Miami River District of the West Ohio Conference of The United Methodist Church brings you a tour of UMC Food Ministry, their process, and notes on how the pandemic has changed they way they work to meet the needs of their community.

With assistance from the Owen County School District, the UMC Food Ministry will see that hundreds of local children continue to receive free meals this summer. The school district began its weekly food deliveries in mid-March after Gov. Andy Beshear recommended all public and private K-12 schools close due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

The district continued its distribution each week through May 26, turning the process over to UMC Food Ministry June 1, which partners with non-profit agencies in Kentucky and Ohio to provide meals to children and youth.

With assistance from the Owen County School District, the UMC Food Ministry will see that hundreds of local children continue to receive free meals this summer. The school district began its weekly food deliveries in mid-March after Gov. Andy Beshear recommended all public and private K-12 schools close due to the outbreak of COVID-19.

The district continued its distribution each week through May 26, turning the process over to UMC Food Ministry June 1, which partners with non-profit agencies in Kentucky and Ohio to provide meals to children and youth.

No one should go hungry in our community. While many face what is known as “food insecurity” all year, even more families are finding themselves in need of help during the current crisis.

Thanks to a Northern Kentucky church program, children and their families in our area have a new resource to help. The Covington/Northern Kentucky United Methodist Church provides food to families in need through its UMC Food Ministry.

During these uncertain times, our community's needs are greater than ever. If you want to help out in some way but are unsure where to begin, you can start with these great causes.

CINCINNATI (WKRC) - Cincinnati Public Schools set a lofty goal: Feed the hungry where they are. The goal starts with a bag, some fruits and an assembly line. Six weeks. 140,000 meals and now closer to the kids than ever. Now, there's a distribution site within one mile of every household in a high-poverty area in Cincinnati.

“We’re partnering with UMC Food Ministry and Child Hunger Alliance and many other community partners to fill gaps that may be in the city,” said Lauren Marlow, CPS’ supervisor of nutrition.

As coronavirus has shut down the United States, schools have had no choice but to close and move classes — or at least, some semblance of them — online. But some school services can’t be delivered remotely. You can’t serve lunch over Zoom.

The strain of social isolation is building for families, but there's a bright spot to be had most weekdays at the two dozen Cincinnati Public Schools food distribution sites.

UMC Food Ministry, a ministry of the Northern Kentucky District of our Kentucky Annual Conference, is in its second decade of serving meals to children in Kentucky and Ohio. On a typical day, we serve more than 5,000 meals in child care and after school settings, and during the summer more than 15,000 meals daily. These are all done in settings where kids gather.

Of course, with the COVID-19 pandemic, kids cannot gather at present. However, that isn't stopping UMC Food from getting food to children who need it. UMC Food has many pickup places in churches, libraries and community centers, where children and families can come pick up several days’ worth of meals for their kids.

Cincinnati schoolchildren will still have access to food during the state-ordered school closure to combat the new coronavirus.

The school closures, which begin Tuesday and will last at least three weeks, will coincide with the implementation of a response plan by Cincinnati Public Schools to provide meals for pick up from two dozen sites around the district.