Wallace School District secures funding for meals program

OSBURN — Some students in the Wallace School District won’t have to worry about weekend meals thanks to Bites to Go.

The program was almost taken away from the district due to funding concerns, but with a valiant effort from a school board trustee and the generosity of several local community members and businesses like Dave Smith Motors, the program will endure.  

Bites to Go provides financially challenged students with shelf-stable meals for breakfast, lunch and dinner for two days that they take home for the weekend. 

Funding was dangerously close to running out before Wallace School District Trustee Amy Lynn stepped in.  

She said the program costs roughly $11,000 annually to fund and has secured enough funding to make it through 2026.   

“This program has been funded by community organizations and private patrons in the past,” Lynn said. “For the past few years, the district has had to cover some of the cost of the program.”  

The district was going to have to shut down the program at the semester in October. However, Lynn requested permission to continue the hunt for donations and other means to fund the program.  

Each week, between 20 and 40 students in the Wallace School District take advantage of the Bites to Go program. According to recent statistics from the U.S. Census Bureau, 19% of kids in Shoshone County live below the poverty line, a number that is 8% higher than the state average.

Lynn and the Wallace School District are looking for anyone who would like to partner with the district for the life of the program to ensure that no students in the Wallace School District worry about food when they’re away from school.  

Info: 208-753-4515