The thing about heroes is that, outside of the comic strips, they pretty much look like everybody else. It’s what they do that’s so amazing. A hunger hero’s superpower is to connect kids to food—to end child hunger.
This week, No Kid Hungry announced the 2025 Summer Hunger Heroes—honorees from nine states across the nation who are doing amazing work to ensure that summer no longer has to be the hungriest time of year for kids. Their commitment to summer hunger relief covers everything from expanding summer meal programs in rural communities to broadening the impact of Summer EBT, so that eligible families can afford nourishing food for their children.
While their heroic efforts are paying off in the summer--when the kids are out of school--these champions are putting in the long hours all through the year. Staffing, funding, equipment issues, legislative negotiation—you name it, they handle it and get it done. All in the name of ensuring kids can count on healthy meals all summer long, allowing them to return to school in the fall healthy and ready to learn.
This year’s No Kid Hungry Summer Hunger Heroes are as follows:
 | Mary Franklin, the director of the Division of County Operations for the Arkansas Department of Human Services in Little Rock, Arkansas, is an unsung hero, working closely alongside the Arkansas Hunger Relief Alliance to start up the state’s Summer EBT program. The program has been successful so far, with more than 324,000 Arkansas children receiving Summer EBT benefits in 2025, ensuring that kids and families have access to much needed summer nutrition. |
  | Amber Green and Nick Dramis, of Marysville Joint Unified School District in California, are the director of Nutrition and oversee Culinary Operations, respectively. Recognizing the potential impact of rural non-congregate meal programs, Green and Dramis launched four non-congregate sites (sites where families can either pick up meals or have them delivered at home for their kids) last summer and plan to expand this year beyond their district boundaries, addressing food insecurity across the entire county. |
 | Jamie Lovett, the director of Food and Nutrition Services for the School Board of Alachua County in Gainesville, Florida, worked hard to establish the rural non-congregate meal program in her county, even as she faced financial constraints and staffing challenges. In their second year of operation, they increased meals served by 425%, with a No Kid Hungry grant. |
 | Lucretia Hertzock, director of Child Nutrition for the St. Landry Parish School Board in Opelousas, Louisiana, has done outstanding work building up the rural non-congregate meal program in her community. She focuses on meeting the varied needs of the students, and has expanded the summer meal program through self-prep boxes for families living in rural areas. |
 | Pam Allen, executive director of MidShore Meals til Monday in Cambridge, Maryland, had a vision of a mobile program to ensure food access to the least accessible areas of Dorchester County. MtM began serving summer meals last year, and through a grant with No Kid Hungry, now has a fully outfitted van and will expand the reach of summer meals to more families, even those living in remote areas. |
 | Lauren Weyand, director of School Nutrition for Craven County Schools in New Bern, North Carolina, is a huge advocate of Summer EBT and getting the word out about summer meals to families in her community. She is a big supporter of farm-to-school, the use of local foods, the expansion of school breakfast and summer meals. |
 | Mickela Mitchell, director of Food and Nutrition Services for Union County Schools, South Carolina, maxed out home delivery of summer meals last year and, having recognized that many kids missed out, is now opening four sites of Groceries-To-Go with pick-up options three times per week in addition to home delivery. |
 | Representative Mary Littleton, Tennessee General Assembly - District 78, Cheatham and Part of Dickson Counties, was very supportive of retaining Summer EBT in Tennessee this year and worked hard on potential legislation to achieve that goal. She anticipates working with No Kid Hungry to discuss ways the state can address hunger and poverty needs and plans summer meal site visits in her district. |
  | Carey Sealy and Curtis Dickerson, of the Fredericksburg Regional Food Bank of Virginia, are the director of Distribution Services and Distribution Logistics manager, respectively. Carey and Curtis oversee the operation of 12 sites - including churches, schools, a park and even a retail partner. This year, they are expanding evening hours to every county they serve, helping to better meet the needs of working families. They’re also piloting Ship-to-Home – a critical step for reaching households with limited transportation. |
No Kid Hungry salutes these heroes and all those who do the amazing work to keep our children nourished and healthy over the summer and throughout the year.
