Letters to the Editor

Support summer food program

Summer is the hungriest time of the year for many kids, as families struggle to replace the free and reduced-price meals served at school. We have a solution to help feed 3.75 million Texas children, but our state lawmakers must act now.

Summer EBT is a federal nutrition program that provides eligible families with $40/month per child in grocery benefits during the summer months ($120 total). Thirty-seven states began offering the program last summer, and Texas still has the opportunity to follow suit in 2025 and beyond.

We urge all Texans to voice their support for summer EBT by calling on their representatives to take action before the March deadline. Constituents can call, email, send letters and forms through official websites or visit their representatives’ offices.

Summer EBT can help end summer hunger by bridging gaps in family grocery budgets, helping caregivers avoid impossible decisions like whether to buy food or keep the lights on.

It’s good policy, and good politics too — 96% of Texans agree that ending childhood hunger should be a bipartisan effort. State lawmakers have the power to make hunger-free summers a reality — we can’t afford to wait another year.

Mia Medina

No Kid Hungry Texas

Volunteer by visiting

I think that we (as a society) should focus more on volunteerism. Government can serve many functions, but one thing it cannot replace is human-interaction. People should visit their elderly shut-in relatives, their neighbors, and even strangers.

For years, I have been impressed by the endeavors of the late Rabbi Julius J. Price, Ph.D. He was nationally-known for decades as “the jailhouse Chaplain.” He was very civic-minded, he earned a Doctorate, and belonged to such groups such as the Council of Kadosh. He truly cared about people — inside and outside of jail walls. Back in June 1934, he said the grandest times are not when we are elbowing for a conspicuous place, but when reticent and reflective, quiet and prayerful, we wait on our own destiny in secret (meaning: our private times or thoughts).

Rabbi Price said he didn’t recommend absolute seclusion as an advantage to anybody. He recommended frequent social-interaction with the living world to keep the mind healthy and vigorous; plus, enabling us to see and compare other points-of-view.

I like his perspective. I think if more of us did that type of thing, we would see a lot more harmony in society.

James A. Marples

Longview