United Way of Whiteside County will celebrate 25 years of making sure no child in Whiteside County goes hungry when school is out.

Let’s Feed Our Children, the free summer meal program that has grown into one of the most far-reaching child hunger programs in the area, begins its 2026 season on Wednesday, May 27, and runs weekly through Wednesday, Aug. 5.

Each Wednesday, families can pick up grab-and-go bags containing four free, kid-friendly meals at any of the program’s 17 distribution sites across 11 communities. No registration or paperwork is needed; all children or teens are welcome.

“What started as a small, local response to summer hunger has grown into something that reflects the very best of this community,” said Keri Olson, CEO of United Way of Whiteside County. “Twenty-five years in, we are reaching more kids in more places than ever before, and that is because of the volunteers, donors, and partners who show up every single week. This anniversary is theirs as much as it is ours.”

The program started during one of the most difficult economic moments in Whiteside County’s modern history.

When Northwestern Steel and Wire in Sterling closed its doors in 2001, the community lost thousands of jobs virtually overnight. Families were thrust into sudden financial hardship. Community leaders and local organizations recognized that kids would go hungry in the summer without the safety net of school meals. Let’s Feed Our Children was born from that response to a community in crisis.

Twenty-five years later, the program continues to serve a community where need has never disappeared. Since the Covid 19 pandemic, Let’s Feed Our Children has expanded from 15,000 meals distributed in 2021 to more than 46,000 meals served in 2025. UWWC is projecting to serve 50,000 meals in 2026.

2026 program locations

Meals will be distributed at the following sites from noon to 12:30 p.m. Wednesdays, May 27 through Aug. 5:

• Albany: United Methodist Church
• Erie: Village Office
• Fulton: First Reformed Church
• Lyndon: Village Office
• Morrison: Crossroads Community Church
• Prophetstown: Eclipse Square Shelter
• Rock Falls: Coloma Homes, Merrill School, Rock Falls Public Library, Rotary Park
• Sterling: Broadway Methodist, Latin American Social Club, Scheid Park, St. Paul Apartments, Ster-Lynn Apartments, Wallace School
• Tampico: Wietenkamp Hall

Let’s Feed Our Children is made possible by the generosity of individual donors, local businesses, community organizations and grant funders who believe every child deserves reliable access to food, regardless of the time of year. UWWC continues to seek community support to sustain and grow the program.

For more information about Let’s Feed Our Children, to find the nearest meal site or to learn how to support the program through a donation or volunteering, contact United Way of Whiteside County at 815-625-7973 or visit www.uwwhiteside.org.

United Way of Whiteside County is a nonprofit organization based in Rock Falls working to improve lives and strengthen communities in Whiteside County. Through programs like Let’s Feed Our Children and the Dolly Parton Imagination Library, UWWC connects people who care with causes that matter.