The Times - Serving Waitsburg, Dayton and the Touchet Valley

WAITSBURG – The board of the Waitsburg Resource Center is always looking for more ways to serve the community. At their most recent meeting, they voted to utilize Second Harvest's Bite 2 Go program to provide weekend meals to elementary students in need.

The WRC has spent several months investigating the idea of providing weekend meal kits for elementary school students from needy families. Board Chair Pam Conover said District School Superintendent Carol Clarke recently polled teachers, who came up with a list of approximately 25 students they thought could benefit from the meals.

After learning of a similar program in Pomeroy, Conover and WRC board member Margie Benson visited there earlier this year, to see how their program was operated. Recently, Conover learned that Second Harvest has already developed the Bite 2 Go program, and that the WRC can participate in it through the Blue Mountain Action Council (BMAC).

WRC will serve as the sponsoring organization, pick up preassembled food kits from the BMAC Food Bank in Walla Walla, and deliver them to the school. Each kit includes food supplies that cover four meals and three snacks that are nutritious, easy-to-open, nonperishable, and don't require cooking.

The district will send home permission slips allowing families they feel could benefit from the program to sign up. Teachers will place the kits discreetly in backpacks belonging to participating students while the students are at lunch or recess.

The kits are purchased in bulk by Second Harvest and cost $4 per kit. It will cost the WRC $144 per student to provide weekend meals for the school year. The board has committed to funding meals for 25 students, at an approximate cost of $400/month or $3,600 for the school year.

The WRC welcomes donations from individuals or organizations willing to help offset the ongoing cost of the program. Conover said the Center has the funds to get the program started, but will need community support to maintain it in future years.

With the goal of being more than just a food bank, the WRC meets the needs of the community in a variety of ways. The WRC supplies snacks for the summer reading program, provides meals and activities for students during the winter school break, and meets the needs of high school students through their backpack program, as well as providing food for needy families.

The WRC has also sponsored a summer activity program, provided free bicycle helmets to children, sponsored mobile dental van visits, and sponsored school visits from dental hygienists.

Financial and food donations are always welcome and can be delivered during regular center hours.

The Waitsburg Resource Center is located at 106 Preston Avenue (on the side of the Banner Bank building) and is open Saturdays from 9-11 a.m. and Thursdays from 2-4 p.m. The center serves families in the Waitsburg and Prescott school districts.