Iowa City Public Library receives five-year funding for snack program

The library will receive funds from the Walder-Christensen Charity for the next five years to provide snacks for children.

Cole Miller, News Reporter

October 30, 2025

Clara Jarecke

Kids grab snacks from the bin by the checkout counter in the children’s section of the Iowa City Public Library on Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025. The program happens daily for all children under the age of eighteen to have a snack. ICPL recently received a grant by the Walder-Christensen Charitable Fund that will fund the snack program for the next five years.

The Iowa City Public Library has announced a new grant that will provide children under the age of 18, particularly elementary-aged children, with food through their Snacks Program. The grant ensures a consistent supply of new snacks from the Walder-Christensen Charity and partnering organizations that will provide children with an educational and welcoming environment.

The program, which costs about $6,560 to run, was originally established in 2020 with Iowa City’s Zion Lutheran Church giving month-to-month funding, as well as the ICPL Friends Foundation providing support.

Now, the Walder-Christensen Charity is providing funds to the library for the next five years to counter growing food insecurity.

Katie Roche, the library’s development office coordinator, wrote in an email to The Daily Iowan recent data from a Feeding America study has shown an increase in food insecurity across Iowa.

A May 2025 study from Feeding America found food insecurity has increased in all 99 Iowa counties, Roche said. This affects 12 percent of Iowans, which is nearly 400,000 people, and 16.6 percent of children, which is over 120,000 children.

These rates have continued to increase since 2021, with especially sharp increases in child food insecurity and disproportionately high impacts on Black and Hispanic communities, which is 30 percent and 21 percent of children experiencing food insecurity, respectively.

According to the Iowa City Public Library, the Walder-Christensen Charity is rooted in Iowa City. Kathryn Walder-Christensen, who is part of her family’s charity, said her and her father Dr. Joseph Walder had an admiration for Iowa City and the public library.

“Through a five-year support of the children’s library snack program, I hope to honor his memory by increasing food accessibility and encouraging families to visit the library, thereby opening doors to learning and opportunity in the Iowa City community we love so much,” Walder-Christensen said.

According to the Iowa Farmers Union, more than $11 million that was supposed to go toward programs to help food banks and schools provide food was cut by the Trump administration back in March.

Angela Pilkington, the children’s services coordinator for the library, said the library was notified of the grant after the U.S. Department of Agriculture cut programs that provided funding for food.

“I know going into that this spring, there was talk with DOGE shutting down different parts of the USDA, which funds the school meals,” Pilkington said. “And Iowa City kind of stepped in and funded that program themselves. So it is kind of around that same time that we were notified of this amazing gift.”

The program allows the library to partner with stores that include the Bread Garden Market, Costco, New Pioneer Co-op, Walmart, and Hy-Vee to order new supplies of snacks every month or every other month.

Each year, the funding covers about 16,400 snacks, and calls for higher demand during the summer and breaks from school, Roche said.

“Through consistent tracking, we’ve built in inflation increases and increasing demand in subsequent years, in hopes that we’ll be able to meet the coming needs,” Roche said in the email.

The library does not have official clearance from the USDA to cook or refrigerate items, Pilkington said, and the library doesn’t have refrigerators, microwavers, or stoves, but provides 30 to 60 pre-packaged snacks each afternoon. The snacks include apple sauce pouches, Goldfish crackers, fruit snacks, pretzels, granola bars, Rice Krispies treats, popcorn, mini rice cakes, Popcorners, beef sticks, and snack mixes.

“The program provides only pre-packaged, shelf-stable, and individually wrapped snacks to ensure safety and easy distribution,” Roche wrote. “We avoid all products containing nuts and focus on kid-friendly options.”

Pilkington said the five-year fund for the program provides major reassurance for the community and for children to be provided with food every afternoon.

“It kind of shines a light to see the library in a different way,” Pilkington said. “We’re not just meeting the reading needs, we’re meeting those community needs, and we’re meeting the food needs. Because we want to be seen as the place for learning, engagement, and accessibility.”