| Until last summer, my vegetarianism has never | | | | lunch, and it would interfere with their reports and |
| really made me feel marginalized, even though we | | | | their finances to a small extent. Most programs |
| live in a community without vegetarian | | | | count on the meal reimbursements to help pay |
| restaurants, and I do not know any other | | | | for their programs and figure the meal |
| vegetarian families in town. I admit that I have | | | | reimbursement into the equation. Just taking the |
| even found stories about how persecuted other | | | | meat out of their lunch and letting me provide |
| vegetarian parents felt to be a little maudlin at | | | | them with a substitute for that part was also |
| times. Sure, my relatives have handed sausage to | | | | frowned upon. They worried that such |
| my toddler (she fed it to the dog), teachers have | | | | shenanigans would get them in trouble. Also, it |
| tried to get her to make lunchmeat snowflakes, | | | | would mean more work for them. That sounds |
| and I've faced pressures of various kinds. But I | | | | awful, but it must be understood that most |
| have never seen this as a big problem. I have | | | | child-care providers are underpaid for the cost of |
| always felt pretty free to live our lives by our | | | | the service they provide, understaffed due to |
| values and have not worried too much about the | | | | these funding issues and very heavily regulated. |
| way that other people eat or wish that we ate. | | | | While I badly needed them to try to be more |
| Last summer, however, I encountered some real | | | | flexible, I also could understand their point of view, |
| barriers, and I am feeling a lot more sympathetic | | | | given the regulations of the Food Program. |
| to the concerns that I have heard fellow | | | | This left me with a very big problem, indeed. We |
| vegetarian parents express over the years. | | | | needed summer child-care and my daughter |
| My daughter has always been in child-care due to | | | | needed a healthy, vegetarian lunch every day, but |
| my need to earn our living, but combining | | | | I found the regulations made that nearly |
| vegetarianism and child-care had never been | | | | impossible. Thankfully, I eventually did find a |
| difficult for me until my child reached elementary | | | | program that was not hung up on their |
| school age. Was I ever surprised at what I | | | | reimbursement numbers and was willing to let my |
| discovered! What I have found is that almost all | | | | daughter bring a lunch from home to circumvent |
| of the summer child-care providers for | | | | the lack of a philosophical exemption from the |
| school-aged kids in our community use the USDA | | | | menu...only one, though. This adventure has made |
| Food Program, a federal program that reimburses | | | | me aware of the need for a little social action on |
| child-care providers for the cost of the meals that | | | | this issue. We were very lucky to find a program |
| they provide to the children. I knew this; many | | | | that could afford to be flexible and not everyone |
| other child-care settings use the program, too, | | | | in our situation will be so fortunate. |
| and I am a social worker and consider myself | | | | Most summer child-care programs for school-aged |
| fairly knowledgeable about these things. I did not, | | | | children are dependent on the reimbursements |
| however, know it would cause my family | | | | they receive and cannot afford to go without |
| problems. | | | | very many of them. The high expense of |
| Upon approaching potential child-care providers and | | | | providing child-care is why programs like the |
| mentioning that my daughter was vegetarian and | | | | USDA Food Program exist in the first place. Not |
| would need a vegetarian lunch or for me to pack | | | | being reimbursed for one child might not be a |
| her lunch from home, I was told that I would | | | | heavy burden to them, but they do have to think |
| need a note from a doctor for her to be allowed | | | | about the big picture. If lots of children started |
| a "special diet." I explained that being a vegetarian | | | | requesting "special diets" for which they would not |
| was not a medical condition so I would not be | | | | receive reimbursement, the child-care providers |
| able to produce a note saying that it was. They | | | | might be in real financial trouble. Child-care |
| said that only medical and religious exemptions | | | | providers receiving government subsidies also |
| were allowed. Could I get a note from my | | | | face real concerns about perceived discrimination |
| church? Well, my belief in vegetarianism certainly | | | | issues ... what constitutes a good reason to allow |
| coincides with the simplicity testimony of the | | | | a child to eat a non-reimbursable lunch and what |
| Religious Society of Friends but not all Quakers, | | | | doesn't? They are between a rock and a hard |
| by any means, express the simplicity testimony | | | | place, too, just as my family is, unless the USDA |
| by becoming vegetarians as I have done. My clerk | | | | changes its reimbursement rules. |
| might have written me a note discussing that | | | | There is a need for the USDA Food Program to |
| connection, but it seemed a shaky sort of | | | | institute a philosophical exemption for menu |
| religious ground to me. What we really needed | | | | changes in child-care settings so that vegetarian |
| was a philosophical exemption, and these are not | | | | schoolchildren do not end up being excluded from |
| allowed according to the federal regulations that | | | | summer child-care placements due to this snarl of |
| govern the program. | | | | regulations and reimbursement needs. A child |
| Under the USDA Food Program, child-care | | | | should not have to violate her principles or go |
| providers can serve a vegetarian diet to all of | | | | hungry because she needs child-care, but, |
| their children; they just can't serve a meat-diet to | | | | unfortunately, that is how the system is currently |
| some and a different diet to others without a | | | | arranged under the USDA Food Program. I believe |
| medical or religious exemption, because it is | | | | that we can fix this. Please write to your |
| considered discrimination. I spoke to a state level | | | | Congressional Representative and Senator and |
| administrator in the program and she confirmed | | | | encourage them to legislate that the program |
| that this is true. It was clear from our | | | | include a philosophical exemption in childcare |
| conversation that she was aware of the problem | | | | settings so that vegetarian meals can be provided |
| I would face and unhappy about it. She talked | | | | to vegetarian children. Such a change would allow |
| about the program being behind the times and the | | | | child-care providers to be reimbursed for providing |
| need for change. I felt sure that the child-care | | | | those meals without fear of repercussions. This is |
| providers and I could come up with something | | | | not, of course, the sort of issue that many |
| workable, but this official knew better. She had | | | | members of Congress are going to embrace as a |
| obviously seen this unfold before. | | | | cause, but they should be willing to make a |
| I certainly did not feel that they were obligated to | | | | regulatory change that increases the convenience |
| fix something different for my daughter, and I | | | | with which their own constituents interact with |
| have always been willing to fix her food myself, | | | | the Food Program if their own constituents ask |
| but most of the summer programs were not | | | | them to do so. Please ask them. Vegetarian |
| open to the idea of my packing my own child's | | | | families like mine, who need summer child-care, will |
| lunch. They would not be reimbursed from the | | | | thank you. |
| food program for my child if she did not eat their | | | | |