New Bigfork project assists students in need

A new resource for Bigfork middle- and high-school students who are in need of clothing and hygiene products launched this month at the Bigfork Community Center.

Threads is a project led by the Bigfork Ladies Service Club to help out the children of families living at or below the poverty level or those whose family may be homeless. The boutique-style shop is located in a room at the community center and is available to students from 1 to 5 p.m. each Thursday. There is no charge to any student and the store is not open to the public.

Kim Rose, vice president of the Bigfork Ladies Service Club, has spearheaded the project. She said she witnessed the need as she handled the nighttime distributions for the Bigfork Food Bank.

“I saw the need,” Rose said. “At the food bank we can only give food, and I kept thinking I wish I could do something.

Bigfork is a tourist and summer town, but we forget there is a whole other world [of residents] working in the restaurants and shops, trying to make a living,” she said.

Sandra Lonon, another club member who has helped with Threads, reiterated the need, saying “it is not unusual for students living in poverty and homelessness to be nearly invisible.”

“These children are vulnerable,” Lonon said. “They account for the greatest number of school absences and for dropping out before graduation; just getting to school is often a struggle.”

Rose said the children of families living in poverty are victims of their circumstances.

Rose presented the idea for Threads to her club in September. It was enthusiastically approved, a committee was formed and start-up money was allocated. Threads quickly was embraced by the community. The Bigfork Community Center provided space free of charge in an ideal location across from the schools.

The Bigfork United Methodist Church and Reloved Thrift Store donated clothing racks and volunteers have rallied to sort donations and fill the small store.

At the same time, primarily through word of mouth, donations of clothing and hygiene products began to arrive, Lonon said.

“I had a kid the other day who just needed socks,” Rose said. “The need is real.”

Donations may be dropped off every Thursday between 1 and 5 p.m. at the community center, 639 Commerce Street. Donated items should not be left outside the building. Bigfork Ladies Service Club volunteers are there during the scheduled hours to receive donations. To arrange an alternative drop-off time, call Rose at 406-249-5820.

New or gently worn, clean clothing appropriate for teenagers is appreciated, especially jackets, hoodies, hats and boots. Also needed are new underwear and socks, new unopened toothbrushes, deodorant, soap and shampoo. Money donations are always gratefully accepted, Lonon said. All donations are tax-deductible.

“Bigfork is proving itself to be a community that cares for its own and that understands that a couple of nice tops or shirts, a pair of pants and a coat and warm boots can make a huge difference in the life of one — hopefully, each one in need — of our students,” Lonon said. “They are generously ‘recycling’ their children’s, grandchildren’s or their own clothing.”

The service club also is grateful to Bigfork students who are also donating clothing as well as volunteering their time, she added.

“Bigfork High School’s Robin Shanks is Threads’ liaison ‘angel,’” Lonon said.

The Bigfork Ladies Service Club is a nonprofit organization that began as the Lady Lions in 1961. Its focus has always been on helping to identify and address areas of need within the community.

Features editor Lynnette Hintze may be reached at 758-4421 or by email at lhintze@dailyinterlake.com.