Lunch at the Library Adds Dental Health Services
Pasadena Public Library
Innovation Synopsis
Pasadena Public Library’s annual summer meal program, Lunch at the Library, provides free weekday lunches and enrichment activities to support learning for children ages 0-18 as well as youth job opportunities for teens. In 2026, we expanded the initiative beyond these core offerings introducing a new wraparound services component designed to connect families in greatest need directly to the essential resources they required.
Free dental care, insurance guidance, diaper giveaways and Family Navigator support services were added. Library staff partnered with Young & Healthy, USC’s Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry and the Pasadena Public Health Department to provide free preventive healthcare for children, including access to USC’s Mobile Dental Van, as well as assistance with health insurance and immunization information, free diaper distribution, referrals to no cost vision and pediatric exams and support for parents and caregivers of children with disabilities.
Challenge/Opportunity
Food insecurity was a concern when the library launched its initial summer lunch program in 2023, with 13.9% of Pasadena households experiencing food insecurity and 10.7% of new parents being food insecure according to the Pasadena Maternal Health Assessment (MIHA). It was encouraging to see an overall improvement in the 2025 Health Needs Assessment, which reported 13% of households experiencing food insecurity. However, food insecurity among new parents increased, rising to 18.5%. Since families with young children are disproportionately impacted, many of our wraparound services were intentionally designed to support this population and respond directly to their growing needs.
The mobile dental clinic reported that offering services at the library broadened their reach, drawing families from areas of Pasadena they had not previously served.
Key Elements of Innovation
• Partnered with Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD) to offer free meals five days a week for eight weeks at two library branches to children ages 0-18.
• Distributed free books to encourage the children and their families to build home libraries and connect to the Summer Reading program.
• Offered enrichment activities to engage children in continued learning during the summer.
• Partnered with Young & Healthy (a local nonprofit) and Herman Ostrow School of Dentistry of USC to offer free dental care for children ages 5-18.
• Partnered with the Pasadena Public Health Department to offer immunization information, free diaper distribution and referrals to no-cost/low-cost vision and pediatric exams for children ages 0-18.
• Hired 21 youth interns to assist with the program. Trained interns in library operations and food safety. Mentored interns in job readiness and social emotional skills through onboarding, role modeling, outreach and program engagement.
Achieved Outcomes
This was the first year Lunch at the Library offered wraparound services, expanding support for families through meals, activities, and essential resources. The program provided dental care to 55 children, distributed 275 diaper packs and 100 baby wipe packs, offered 160 activities while serving more than 3,500 meals, and connected 243 families to services through Young & Healthy’s eight visits.
Families also received free books throughout the summer, inspiring one eight year old at the free dental clinic to ask her mother if they could return every day to build her “house library.” Her mother, recently uninsured after her husband’s passing, later met with Young & Healthy and secured low cost health coverage. She also signed her daughter up for a library card, and they are now regular patrons—illustrating how libraries serve as trusted community hubs that help bridge service gaps and connect families to vital support.
