LAUREL — A local food bank that began as a pay-what-you-can thrift store is now playing a crucial role in helping Laurel Public Schools provide meals to students facing food insecurity.
Watch how a local nonprofit is assisting Laurel Public Schools and the community:
According to the Montana Food Bank Network, one in six children in Montana experiences food insecurity. In Laurel, that need has become increasingly visible. Laurel Public Schools currently serves about a dozen homeless students, a number that fluctuates throughout the year, and nearly 100 students across the district rely on weekend backpack meals.
“We've noticed that the population with our homeless families has increased, with funds being very limited to school districts,” said Christina Petersen, Laurel Public Schools’ director of student services. "We aren't able to apply for certain grants that would provide funds for our homeless population.”
Petersen helps coordinate the district’s weekend backpack program, which provides meals for students who may not have consistent access to food outside of school. Since the start of the school year, about 2,000 meals have been sent home with students.
The district previously partnered with the Montana Food Bank Network, but rising costs and limited food options made the program difficult to sustain last year.
"We saw an increase in phone calls and the worry and angst of people feeling like they weren't getting their SNAP benefits,” said Petersen. "We've just seen the need really grow within the last few years.”
At the same time, the cost of providing meals continued to cost the district more, and Petersen added that some students were not fans of the meals being provided, further complicating participation in the program.
“Ten thousand (dollars) is not a lot when you're being charged $2,800 for a month of meals," said Petersen.
District officials began searching for an alternative, and luckily found one close to home.
Cristina Goodwin, founder of 406 Finders Keepers, located at 709 E Main St, a pay-what-you-can thrift store and nonprofit in Laurel, had already expanded her organization twice since beginning last January due to community demand. In November, she and her daughter, Maryssa Schultz, who helps volunteer each week, launched a food bank inside the store. It came at a time when many needed assistance as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as food stamps, was not handed out.
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“We have a lot more poverty here in Laurel than anybody would know, probably, unless you're in this kind of work,” said Goodwin.
The food bank operates on a needs-based model, asking households to provide basic information before selecting food items.
“As the year has progressed, it has not only, like, physically gotten larger in terms of the space, but also in the impact that I see from people who come in," said Schultz.
Around the same time the food bank opened, Laurel student services secretary Jeanette Miner reached out to Goodwin to explore a partnership.
“She and I started talking, and it was like, 'Please let me help,'" said Goodwin.
The district soon transitioned its weekend backpack program to 406 Finders Keepers. As a result, the cost per student meal dropped from about $10 to just under $6. Laurel Public Schools now spends roughly $2,000 per month on the program, while community donations to the nonprofit help supplement the meals.
Each backpack meal now includes two breakfasts, two dinners, a snack, a fruit, and a vegetable. With the assistance of volunteers, the food bank prepares about 85 meals weekly for Laurel Intermediate School students in grades three through five, along with about 25 meals for elementary students, and makes additional meals in case of increased need.
“The meals changed drastically, and the amount of food that we were able to provide families at a cheaper cost was like, that sealed the deal,” said Petersen. "We were able to get more food for half the price.”
Petersen said students have responded positively to the new meals, which include familiar items like canned pasta and ravioli.
"They tell us sometimes what the kids say about our backpack program meals, and just hearing it makes me feel so happy,” said Schultz. "It just added a little bit of extra workload, but it's so rewarding."
In addition to food assistance, 406 Finders Keepers has taken over the district’s “Locomotive Closet,” which provides students with free clothing and hygiene items.
“When Cristina told us that those pieces could also be housed with her, we were like, this is a godsend,” said Petersen.
For Goodwin and her daughter, they do the work not only out of the kindness of their heart, but because they've been there before.
"Growing up, we didn't really have a lot, and a program like this would have saved me and my sister just a lot," said Schultz. "Admittedly, it's very rewarding. I take almost a selfish kind of pride in that, like it makes me feel good.”
"Especially when you've been there, and you know it's so hard for you not to have feelings towards it and know that when they come in and ask for help, they're just as embarrassed as I was before,” added Goodwin. “My children were going hungry on the weekends, and I don't have to see people do that.”
Since launching the food bank, Goodwin said its reach has continued to grow, serving not only students and families but also individuals experiencing homelessness.
"I have homeless people that come in here and say, 'Mama, I was cold last night,' and I'm like, 'Oh my gosh, honey, let's go get you some warm clothes,'" she said. "They feel comfortable enough to call me mama. That's pretty big. That makes a big impact."
Petersen said the partnership with the nonprofit has significantly expanded what the district can provide to students.
"We've just exploded in the way that we can provide to the students in Laurel," she said. "It's been awesome."
In February, Goodwin plans to add a minimum price to thrift store items to assist with their food bank donation costs, but the mission will remain the same. She plans to keep expanding and serving her community as long as it is needed.
"I just really feel like this is our calling. This is my pay it forward in life," said Goodwin. “I think we're just going to keep going, and like I said, once we get to the Walmart size, we'll be good. We might slow down then, but until then, we're going to keep on trucking."
