Feeding Eudora will move its location this summer to reconnect the program with its original home and save its limited funding.
Since Feeding Eudora originated at the Eudora Community Library, moving it to the library parking lot and lawn will better highlight where the program came from, Director Laura Smith said.
“This is a library program. This is something that they started, and many people don’t realize that Feeding Eudora was started by the library because we had citizens going in that were hungry, and our librarians were feeding them out of their own pockets,” Smith said.
There will be picnic tables set up in the library parking lot for people to sit after getting their food, or people are always still welcome to venture back to have a picnic in CPA Park if they’d rather, she said. The lawn of the library will also be available for people to sit.
Feeding Eudora provides free meals for anyone in the community along with occasional activities for kids and families. Each week a different organization or business takes turns hosting the event by preparing and paying for that weeks’ meals. It will still run from noon to 1 p.m. Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in June and July.
Feeding Eudora runs off donations and only gets about eight companies or individuals that donate per year, she said.
Although businesses or organizations are hosting weeks of meals, if one cancels, Feeding Eudora pays for that week of meals itself, she said. It costs around $1,000 to do one each week of meals.
Having to spend money on renting space at CPA Park diverted donations away from the cause, which is helping to fight significant food insecurity within the area, Smith said.
As a nonprofit, they don’t have a high budget on purpose, so it’s important to make sure money is spent responsibly, she said.
In the past, Feeding Eudora used the shelter at CPA Park to prepare and serve. In 2023 they rented it for each event for around $370 and in 2024 a special event permit was set up to allow them to use the space for about $50, Smith said.
Feeding Eudora also gives scholarships to Eudora students and spends money on buying cleaning supplies and trash bags for the events. A large portion of donations went to scholarships or operating costs last year, she said.
Feeding Eudora is not profiting off the program and instead is helping address a community issue, Smith said.
Board member Diane Massey has been involved with Feeding Eudora since its inception in 2016 with the help of the Rev. Lyle Seger.
What used to be for students during the summer has turned into a communitywide opportunity. The program started at the library and eventually moved to the park as it grew.
“It’s been great to see it grow,” she said. “It’s kind of cool to go back to where we started.”
A lot of students would go to the library during the summer and ask librarians for something to eat – many of whom would stay there all day, she said.
Moving it to the library also better connects the program with other resources and connects students closely to the summer reading program. There will be family resource highlights throughout the summer, as well.
Over the years, she’s seen students she used to serve turn into volunteers, investing in helping their own community, she said.
“I think it’s such a simple concept, but yet it makes such a big impact to have different organizations come in and prepare lunches three days a week that anybody can come and eat. There’s just a sense of community and togetherness,” she said. “I mean I’ve seen a lot of kids grow up in the program, you know, I’d see them. I see them every summer.
Eventually she hopes some money can be put into bettering the shelter at CPA Park, not just for Feeding Eudora but other organizations to use again in the future, she said.
Library Director Carol Wohlford has also been around for the program’s entirety and saw kids coming into the library all year long – not just the summer – looking for food. What started as them buying additional snacks and small cereal boxes slowly grew more and more to what it is today. Besides the meals, it’s also become a sort of community event, she said.
“It brings all kinds of people together, and everybody gets to kind of know each other, and maybe they don’t live in the same neighborhoods, or maybe they aren’t the same socioeconomic group. But everybody gets together and has fun, and people look forward to it,” she said.
Wohlford said bringing it back to the library is the next best thing because people will know where it is, it’s close by and will still give people the ability to go next door to the park if they want to.
The program continues to be something Smith is asked to talk more about to other communities because of the proven success in Eudora and its unique model, Smith said.
The community is what makes it work, and they hope to keep it going for the long haul, so the least number of obstacles the better, Smith said.
Funds are getting lower but need continues to get higher, so donations are always appreciated, she said.
To donate to Feeding Eudora, click here. Checks or money orders can be sent to PO Box 448, Eudora, KS, 66025.
