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On a sunny summer weekday , a 15- passenger van pulled into the Woodland Park apartment complex in north Madison. A bunch of kids stood on the curb, assembled in a pseudo line, waiting for the van, excited and jostling for a better position. “You guys got Cheetos?” a little boy yelled out. The kids know the drill: the van comes every day to bring them free lunch and they wait as the volunteers set up the day's offerings: first carrots, then yogurt, crackers, a fruit snack, sandwich and juice boxes. The service is from The River Food Pantry as part of its Madison Urban Nutritional Children ’s Hotspot (MUNCH) program. When school’s not in session, MUNCH delivers lunch to kids eight north side low -income neighborhoods who might otherwise go without. THE NEED: ‘THIS IS ALL WE HAVE’ The MUNCH program started last summer and delivered over 10,000 lunches in 2016. This year, they’ve added more neighborhoods to their route and have already delivered over 30,000, with an average of ab...

Hate, Hope and Swimming Lessons An American Summer With the First Syrians in Iowa Abdul Fattah Tameem and his family enjoy the pool on a hot summer day at the family's new apartment complex in West Des Moines , a suburb of Des Moines, Iowa." width="1520" height="1014" /> Abdul Fattah Tameem and his family enjoy the pool at the family’s new apartment complex in West Des Moines . By ROBIN SHULMAN | Photographs by DANNY WILCOX FRAZIER —VII for TIME Just over a year ago, Ghazweh Aljabooli and her husband and five children landed at the Des Moines airport and became the first refugees from Syria’s ongoing civil war to settle in Iowa . In their first summer in America, each step felt momentous . The first shopping trip to Walmart, the kids playing in a pool and taking the bus to school, all put the horrors of war further behind them—the years without sufficient food, the bombs that destroyed their house and ruined their city of Homs, the month they cam...

Wednesday, August 16, 2017 at 8 a.m. freshly made biscuit at Welcome Diner." /> Breakfast sandwiches come on a freshly made biscuit at Welcome Diner. Jacob Tyler Dunn It's back to school week for ASU Downtown students , and whether you're new to the whole college thing, new to ASU, or coming back to Phoenix after a summer away, you'll find that the culinary landscape of our urban playground is brimming anew with old favorites and exciting new haunts. There are a ton of dining options to explore in Phoenix, but these 10 are our favorite student -friendly spots within walking distance of the Arizona State University downtown campus . Courtesy of Bowl of Greens Bowl of Greens 555 North Central Avenue Hours: Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Friday, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.; closed Saturday and Sunday Distance Walking from ASU: 0 minutes Price Range: $5-$10 Located in the bottom floor of the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism, this restaurant is hands-down the m...

Published 12:05 pm, Friday, August 4, 2017 Image 1 of / 1 Caption Close Image 1 of 1 Houston Apartment Association : Apartment pools can be hazardous Back to Gallery One of the greatest things about apartment living in Houston is the swimming pool. Apartment properties take great pride in their pools. For many, it's the most visible amenity. It's how they lease apartments. Prospective residents picture themselves relaxing at that beautiful pool on a hot summer day and can't wait to move in. Apartment pools can also be a hazard - especially for small children. Here are a few things to keep in mind when you live at a property with a swimming pool. No lifeguards – An apartment property isn 't the YMCA. There are no lifeguards. Even at a public pool with a lifeguard, there's no substitute for taking control of your own safety and that of your kids. Always swim with a buddy and watch your children at all times. If you are having a pool party, assign a dedicated per...

NEW YORK, NY — In the summer of 1977, New York City was — literally and figuratively — on fire. It was the summer of disco fever, of Studio 54. It was the summer of Yankees mania. It was the summer that catapulted Ed Koch to City Hall. And in mid-July, it turned into the summer of darkness, when an epic, five-borough power outage — deemed an "act of God" by Con Ed — plunged the city into two days of total blackout. Airports shut down. News stations went off the air. Thousands were stuck in underground subway tunnels . Meanwhile, in the streets, the down-and-out — at their breaking point after years of municipal layoffs and a steady surge in violent crime — rioted and looted with abandon. Arsonists reportedly set more than 1,000 fires across the city in a single day. The Bronx, it would later be said, was burning. It was also the Summer of Sam. Want more local news? Sign up here to receive free newsletters and alerts from the New York City Patch . In spring 1977, police con...

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — What started off as a way to get out of summer camp has turned into a labor of love for a Cambridge 10-year-old who passes out over 50 homemade lunches a week to homeless individuals living on the streets near his Central Square home . Little notes of encouragement -- “Have a nice day” or “Try to smile” -- accompany the brown paper bags hand -packed with any variation of peanut butter and jelly, ham and cheese, apples, oranges and potato chips. Advertisement Wicked Local reports Liam Hannon , an incoming fifth-grader at the Morse School, said he got the idea from Brain Chase, an educational website he participated in this summer in lieu of camp. “It’s a treasure hunt, but you have to do different academic challenges and I picked ‘service,’ and for the first week it was helping the homeless,” said Liam. A simple act Liam’s father, Scott Hannon, said when he heard the website’s challenge, he was thinking of how they could help the homeless large scale . “I was coming ...

Italy is known for some of the best foods in the world. It's home to some of the greatest bread, pasta, gelato, and wine, as we all know, but there are a lot of other delicious dishes that are lesser known, yet equally amazing. This past summer I got the wonderful opportunity to study abroad in Italy, making my way around several parts of the country and trying a ton of amazing foods that honestly, I now wish I would've eaten more of. You simply have  to visit Italy at least once in your life — I insist. I understand that the number of food options can be overwhelming and you might be unsure what to eat in Italy. So, the following is a list that my fellow Spoon members and I have put together for you on 50 of the foods that you absolutely must try there (although, I'd certainly advise you try more if you can). 1. Tomatoes Tomatoes ( pomodori ) are a huge part of Italian food culture , as they're the backbone of the most terrific sauces, soups, salads, and more. The mos...