Three CACFP Leaders show how child nutrition programs shape careers and communities

By AI, Created 8:51 PM UTC, May 27, 2026, /AGP/ – Three National CACFP Association board members turned early experiences with child nutrition programs into careers serving children and providers. Their work now helps thousands of children in West Virginia, Nebraska and Florida receive meals and snacks through the USDA’s Child and Adult Care Food Program.

Why it matters: - The Child and Adult Care Food Program helps child care providers serve meals and snacks that support children’s health, school readiness and daily learning. - The program also supports working families and providers by easing food insecurity and strengthening local child care networks. - The three leaders highlighted by the National CACFP Association now help deliver nutrition support to more than 8,850 children each day across West Virginia, Nebraska and Florida.

What happened: - Michelle Buchanan, Carrie Murphy and Maves Ranola were profiled for careers shaped by the Child and Adult Care Food Program. - Buchanan is Food Program Director at Community Action of Southeastern West Virginia, where she once attended Head Start at age five. - Murphy is Executive Director of Provider’s Network, Inc., a statewide sponsoring organization in Nebraska. - Ranola is Director of Nutrition at Lutheran Services Florida, a statewide nonprofit that serves vulnerable Floridians.

The details: - Community Action of Southeastern West Virginia sponsors about 65 family child care homes and serves more than 950 children daily. - Buchanan said the CACFP supports providers, working parents and the broader community by helping children build healthier eating habits. - Buchanan also said CASEWV’s approach is to treat mistakes as learning opportunities for providers. - Provider’s Network sponsors 230 family child care homes and serves more than 1,900 children each day. - Murphy entered the field after leaving a paralegal career in 2001 to open a licensed family child care home. - Murphy later joined the Provider’s Network board, served as board president and then became executive director. - Every Provider’s Network staff member had child care experience before Murphy became executive director. - Murphy also participates in the Nebraska Early Childhood Policy Leadership Academy. - Lutheran Services Florida has served as a CACFP sponsor since the 1980s. - LSF now oversees 24 Head Start and Early Head Start sites, about 396 family child care homes and four emergency shelters. - LSF’s CACFP network provides meals and snacks to more than 6,000 children. - Ranola has 18 years of CACFP experience. - Ranola said CACFP helps children receive healthy meals, reduces food insecurity for families and teaches lifelong healthy habits. - The National CACFP Association has supported CACFP participants since 1986 and focuses on nutrition security for families.

Between the lines: - Buchanan’s story shows how CACFP can create a long career arc, not just a short-term support system. - Murphy’s path suggests the program’s strongest advocates often come from inside family child care itself. - Ranola’s role shows how a statewide nonprofit can use CACFP as part of a larger anti-poverty and child well-being strategy. - The common thread is that CACFP is being framed as infrastructure for child care, not just a reimbursement mechanism.

What’s next: - The National CACFP Association will likely keep using leader stories like these to build awareness of CACFP among providers, employers and community members. - The sponsoring organizations in West Virginia, Nebraska and Florida will continue serving children and child care homes through their CACFP networks. - The broader policy challenge remains expanding understanding of how CACFP supports families, providers and school readiness.

The bottom line: - Three long-serving CACFP leaders show how nutrition programs can shape careers, strengthen child care systems and improve access to healthy meals for thousands of children.