Grassroots nonprofit feeds, provides supplies for Athol community

ATHOL — Oranges, bananas, apples, carrots, cookies, chips, sandwiches and drinks to wash it all down have been freely served with grins and goodwill at Athol City Park this summer.

"We specifically picked Tuesdays because Tuesday is the same day our food banks open," Bestowing the Basics founder Corilynne Smith said Tuesday morning.

Smith, a stay-at-home Athol mom with three boys, started the Bestowing the Basics nonprofit in January 2022 to provide hygiene supplies and household items to families and community members in need, a resource that is still offered one Tuesday every other month.

For five weeks, Smith and her small army of volunteers have served Tuesday lunches from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. to any and all, no paperwork required. During the July 23 lunch, the crew served 105 people. The week before, 115 people were served.

“Last week, it was quite overwhelming," volunteer Cherish Hansen said. "We had a line of 53 before we even started."

Hansen, an Athol resident and art teacher at Winton Elementary School in Coeur d'Alene, recognized years ago how a free meal site would benefit families. When her oldest son was younger and riding his bike around town with friends, Hansen found herself making nearly a dozen sandwiches every day to fill empty bellies.

Her son and his friends told her about how all the kids would go to the local market and pizza parlor to do chores in exchange for food while their parents were away at work.

"My kids had friends that mostly lived right here, and none of their moms were ever home during the summer," she said. "I knew there was a need."

Bestowing the Basics volunteers work with the city of Athol to use its facilities and prep food in the Athol Community Center. Smith said the group doesn't receive any grant, state or federal funding. 

“We exist because of our community,” she said.

Smith and her husband provided all the funding when the nonprofit first launched. 

“Instead of tithing, we said, ‘Why don’t we put our money back into our own community?'” she said. "So, until we got our nonprofit status and until people started learning about us, we just funded it ourselves."

She said social media has been a great tool for gathering support.

“When we put out a need, the community responds just like that,” she said with a snap of her fingers. “We have a lot of people that send us money so that we can shop, and we have donation bins throughout Athol.”

Mom Ciera Miller, with her three young children, stopped by the Bestowing the Basics picnic table to grab lunch.

“I think it’s amazing," she said. "It’s great for the kids especially. It helps them get out and connect with everybody during the summer.”

Her son, Bentley Chesser, 11, and daughter, Sophia Adams, 5, were greeted with smiles as they selected items from the bins of food.

“I think it’s fun and nice for them donating stuff and giving people food," Bentley said.

“I like to play with friends and stuff,” Sophia said.

Grandpa Ross Vincent of Athol was with three of his grandkids. He and his wife volunteer with Cup of Grace in Spirit Lake, another nonprofit that serves the community.

He said he and the kids were just playing in the park when they discovered Bestowing the Basics.

"We didn’t even know they had this,” he said. "It’s a great idea.”

Hansen said she loves seeing families enjoying meals together in the park.

“Last week, this park was full of families scattered, playing, eating, picnicking, everybody smiling and happy," she said.

Of the same heart for wanting others to be happy, healthy and fed, Smith said she is more of a "doer" than a talker — that's what led to Bestowing the Basics in the first place.

“I didn’t want to tell people I love them. I wanted to show them that they’re loved, and I wanted our community to know they are seen," Smith said. "We’re really creating relationships through this.”

Bestowing the Basics lunches will be held for two more weeks. The next household supply and hygiene giveaway will be from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Tuesday at the Athol Community Center, 30355 N. Third St., Athol. The nonprofit will also serve monthly community meals from October through March and has other programs it expects to expand as the nonprofit grows.

Info: bestowingthebasics.org

    Ross Vincent of Athol reads a snack label as Bestowing the Basics volunteer Jennifer Lincoln offers him and his grandchildren Charlotte, 4, and Luke, 2, sandwiches and other goodies Tuesday in Athol City Park.
  

    Bestowing the Basics volunteer Matthew Murray, 20, of Rathdrum, organizes boxes of Kellogg's Corn Pops and Nissin Cup Noodles before free lunches are served Tuesday in Athol City Park.