Meals for Backpacks Program

Meals for Backpacks Program is sponsored by Town Pump Charitable Foundation. This program provides grants to schools, food banks, food pantries, and other community organizations that provide weekend meal programs to Montana students.

Meals for Backpacks | Town Pump Charitable Foundation When students leave school for the weekend, the last thing they should have to worry about is having enough food to eat over the weekend. Research has shown that 1 in 6 Montana children live in homes that struggle to put food on the table. Thanks to Montana School Districts, food banks, food pantries, and civic organizations, weekends are worry-free for many Montana children.

The concept is simple: children at risk of weekend hunger receive a bag of food that is child-friendly, nutritious, and non-perishable to ensure they get enough food on weekends and holidays to avoid hunger when they can’t depend on school meals. Every “backpack” program is unique to the community and school it serves.

Generally a “backpack” will include enough food to replace the meals that children would receive at school (e.g. two breakfast options, two lunch options, two snack options, a can of fruit, and a can of vegetables). Federal reimbursement is not available for the food provided by backpack programs.

Most Montana backpack programs are run through food banks, food pantries, schools and other civic organizations that are already providing emergency and supplemental food assistance for families in need. These groups are dependent on grants, donations and fundraisers to cover their costs.

In 2024, the Town Pump Charitable Foundation’s “Meals for Backpacks” program provided grants to 91 organizations serving communities across Montana. These grants totaling $725,000 have been awarded to schools, food banks, food pantries, and other community organizations that provide weekend meal programs to Montana students.

Since the inception of the “Meals for Backpacks” program in 2016, the Town Pump Charitable Foundation has provided $4. 3 million is financial assistance for weekend meal programs. By providing kids with the nutrients they need when they are away from school, they show up on Monday morning healthy and ready to learn.

Meals for Backpacks 2025 Stats The last thing a child should have to worry about when the school bell rings on Friday afternoon, is what they are going to eat over the weekend. Food Banks, schools, governmental agencies, and service groups work to provide food that is discreetly placed in a child’s backpack to provide breakfast and lunch for Saturday and Sundays.

This replaces the food that a child would normally receive at school. In 2025, we awarded grants totaling over $873,000 to organizations across Montana. Over the past ten years, the foundation has provided $5.

1 million is financial assistance for weekend meal programs. Below are communities where grants were made: 2025 Meals For Backpacks Grants have been awarded to the organizations listed below: Alberton • Alberton School District Anaconda • Anaconda School District Ashland • St.

Labre Youth & Family Services Baker • Baker Arts and Culture Council Bigfork • Bigfork Rotary Foundation, Inc. Billings • Education Foundation for BPS Billings • Friendship House of Christian Service Billings • Coles Pantry Billings • Billings Food Bank Billings • Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch Billings • New Day Ranch Boulder • Jefferson High School FCCLA Box Elder • Box Elder School Bozeman • HRDC District IX Bridger • Bridger School Broadview • Broadview School District Browning • Blackfeet Early Childhood Center Browning • Browning Public Schools Busby • Norther Cheyenne Tribal Schools Butte • Butte Central Elementary School Butte • Butte Central High School Butte • Butte Emergency Food Bank Cascade • Cascade Community Food Bank Chester - Joplin - Inverness • CJI Public Schools Chinook • Meadowlark Elementary School Choteau • Choteau Education Foundation Colstrip • Colstrip Public Schools Columbia Falls • Land to Hand MT Columbus • Project Hope Conrad • Pondera County Food Pantry Cut Bank • Harvest Food Pantry of Cut Bank Deer Lodge • Powell County High School Deer Lodge • Life Essentials and Food Dillon • Southwestern Montana Family YMCA Divide • Divide Elementary School Dodson • Dodson School Dutton • Dutton/Brady School Ekalaka • Ekalaka Public School Eureka • Eureka Public Schools Florence • Florence Carlton School Forsyth • Forsyth Schools Forsyth • Tongue River Emergency Shelter Fort Benton • Fort Benton CIA Fort Benton • GFWC Fort Benton Women's Club Fromberg • Fromberg FFA Geyser • Judith Basin Operation Santa Glasgow • Glasgow High School Glendive • Action for Eastern MT Glendive • Glendive Schools Great Falls • Great Falls Community Food Bank Great Falls • Montana School for the Deaf and the Blind Great Falls • Alliance for Youth, Inc. Hamilton • Hamilton High School Hamilton • Hamilton School District Hardin • Hardin School District 17H&1R Harlem • Harlem Public Schools Harlowton • Harlowton Ministers Association Havre • Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line Helena • Capital High School Helena • Helena High School Helena • Helena Food Share Helena • PureView Health Center Helena • Our Redeemers Lutheran Church Kalispell • HEART Markets Kalispell • Flathead Food Bank Kalispell • Flathead School Snack Program Lakeside • West Shore Community Assistance Lame Deer • Boys & Girls Club of the Northern Cheyenne Nation Laurel • Laurel Middle School Laurel • Laurel High School Laurel • Community Hope, Inc. Laurel • Laurel Public Schools Lavina • Lavina Public School Lewistown • Central Montana Head Start Libby • Libby Food Pantry Livingston • Livingston Food Pantry Lockwood • Lockwood School District Malta • Phillips County Hospital Miles City • First United Methodist Church Missoula • Hellgate High School Missoula • Missoula Food Bank Missoula • Hellgate Elementary Philipsburg • Philipsburg Schools Polson • Polson Loaves & Fishes Power • Power School Red Lodge • Boys and Girls Club Red Lodge • Red Lodge FFA Rocky Boy • Rocky Boy Schools Ronan • Ronan Bread Basket Seeley Lake • Seeley-Swan Community Food Bank Seeley Lake • Seeley-Swan High School Shelby • Sagebrush Food Pantry Shepherd • Shepherd High School FCCLA Sidney • Boys & Girls Club of Richland County St.

Regis • St.

Regis High School Statewide • Montana Food Bank Network Stevensville • Three Mile Community Senior Center Stevensville • Stevensville Primary School Stevensville • Stevensville High School Stevensville • Stevensville Middle School Superior • Superior School District Thompson Falls / Plains • Sanders County Public HD Townsend • Townsend Schools Troy • Morrison Backpacks Victor • Victor Public School Whitefish • Backpack Assistance Program Wibaux • Wibaux Public Schools Wolf Point • Wolf Point School District 45-45A Wyola • Wyola Elementary School Anaconda • Anaconda School District Ashland • St.

Labre Youth & Family Services Baker • Southeast Montana Area Revitalization Team Belt • Belt School District Bigfork • Bigfork Rotary Foundation, Inc. Billings • Billings Food Bank Billings • Coles Pantry Billings • Education Foundation for BPS Billings • Friendship House of Christian Service Billings • Yellowstone Boys and Girls Ranch Bozeman • HRDC District IX Broadview • Broadview School District Butte • Butte Central Elementary School Butte • Butte Central High School Butte • Butte Emergency Food Bank Cascade • Cascade Community Food Bank Chinook • Meadowlark Elementary School Choteau • Choteau Education Foundation Colstrip • Colstrip Public Schools Columbia Falls • Land to Hand MT Columbus • Project Hope Conrad • Pondera County Food Pantry Corvallis • Corvallis Primary School Cut Bank • Harvest Food Pantry of Cut Bank Deer Lodge • Powell County High School Dillon • Southwestern Montana Family YMCA Divide • Divide Elementary School Ekalaka • Ekalaka Public School Eureka • Eureka Public Schools Florence • Florence Carlton School Forsyth • Forsyth Schools Forsyth • Tongue River Emergency Shelter Fort Benton • Fort Benton CIA Fromberg • Fromberg FFA Glasgow • Glasgow High School Glendive • Action for Eastern MT Glendive • Glendive Schools Great Falls • Alliance for Youth, Inc. Great Falls • Great Falls Community Food Bank Hamilton • Hamilton School District Hardin • Hardin School District 17H&1R Harlowton • Harlowton Ministers Association Havre • Boys & Girls Club of the Hi-Line Heart Butte • Pondera County Health Department Helena • Capital High School Helena • Helena Food Share Helena • Helena High School Helena • Helena Public Schools Helena • Our Redeemers Lutheran Church Kalispell • Flathead Food Bank Lakeside • West Shore Community Assistance Laurel • Community Hope, Inc. Laurel • Laurel High School Laurel • Laurel Middle School Lavina • Lavina Public School Lewistown • Central Montana Head Start Libby • Libby Food Pantry Livingston • Livingston Food Pantry Lockwood • Lockwood School District Miles City • First United Methodist Church Missoula • Hellgate Elementary Missoula • Hellgate High School Missoula • Missoula Food Bank Moore • Moore Public School Pablo • Two Eagle River School Philipsburg • Philipsburg Schools Polson • Polson Loaves & Fishes Red Lodge • Boys and Girls Club Ronan • Ronan Bread Basket Sand Coulee • Centerville School Seeley Lake • Seeley Swan Community Food Bank Shelby • Sagebrush Food Pantry Shepherd • Shepherd High School FCCLA Sidney • Boys & Girls Club of Richland County St.

Regis • St.

Regis High School Stevensville • Stevensville High School Stevensville • Stevensville Middle School Stevensville • Stevensville Primary School Stevensville • Three Mile Community Senior Center Superior • Superior School District Thompson Falls/Plains • Sanders County Public HD Townsend • Townsend Schools Trego • Trego School Troy • Morrison Backpacks Victor • Victor Public School Westby • Westby School District #3 Whitefish • Backpack Assistance Program Wibaux • Wibaux Public Schools Wolf Point • Tikkun Olam Ministries Statewide • Montana Food Bank Network charitablefoundation@townpump.

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