Event Participant Meals 

Domestic summer programs typically have many group meals together with the participants. Large group meals, closing ceremony meals, outreach events that include meals, etc. All of these meals (as long as they are within the event budget) can be reimbursed by the event fund (typically by using event advances) and would be included under Event Food. 

Event Field Staff Meals Paid for By Event Fund Reimbursements

The instructions below apply to meals that are intended to be reimbursed by the event fund itself. 

The program fees paid by the participants for an event were not intended to use to fund all attending field staff meals. So, there is a limit for how many field staff meals an event fund can reimburse.

The event is allowed to reimburse two field staff-only meals (in which event participants aren't also present for the meal). The event is allowed to pay for one field staff-only meal for a kick-off field staff event and then again for the closing of the event, as a celebration of how the event went. They are generally only reimbursable using event advance or the event fund for reimbursement twice during a summer-long event and tend to be at the opening and closing of the program.  These costs are in addition to the overall event's kick-off and closing events (in which the event participants are present). Generally, the cost per person for these field staff-only meals should be kept to $35 per person (or less) and per Reliant policy, alcohol is not reimbursable.  

The event fund is not allowed to pay for additional field staff bonding events besides the two listed above. However, the event is allowed to pay for additional field staff meals when the field staff are participating in a group meal, along with event participants. So, the event can reimburse meals for both field staff and participants for weekly group meals for the entire event/program. Or, if you picked a few key student (non-staff) leaders for example and invited them to join the field staff team for an ice cream outing to thank them for being leaders at the program then that ice cream could be covered (for everyone from the event fund).

We try to exclude field staff-only food but when students are present and included then it opens the doors for us to to be able to reimburse these types of things. And to clarify it does not have to involve all the participants that are participating in the program for the meal to be covered- if you have a few key leaders attend it then becomes fine to cover the cost for everyone as a reimbursement from the event fund. Please check with your event finance manager before taking participants out for a meal to insure that it was a budgeted item that the event fund can reimburse.

Speaker Meals

See also Event Honorariums for Churches and Speakers

Meals for meetings with speakers, event employers, landlords, local churches, etc.

There are limits and specific instructions of what can be reimbursed for corporate meals (ex. related to employers, landlords, churches, etc.).  It is allowable for event funds to be used by the summer program event director (or other summer program field staff with approval from the director) to take an employer, landlord, or other person such as an event speaker that has assisted the summer program out to eat for a single meal at a nice restaurant as a thank you.  Please keep these meals to less than $40 per person and remember that alcohol cannot be purchased using petty cash or event reimbursement funds. See Corporate Gifts (Applicable for Events or Departments).