Land to Hand Expands Offerings for Columbia Falls Families, Credits New Space with Ability to Grow

When Land to Hand moved into the old Glacier Gateway School in Columbia Falls in January, a bigger space provided a chance to dream bigger about how to meet people’s needs in the area.

Now, the organization, a nonprofit dedicated to making food accessible to all, has had nine months to settle into the new space and get new programs off the ground.

That includes a new food pantry, which Land to Hand is opening for students at Columbia Falls schools and their families. Land to Hand plans to have the pantry open for shopping for the first time on Sept. 24. That will coincide with an appearance from the North Valley Food Bank’s mobile pantry. The mobile pantry will visit the lobby of the old Glacier Gateway School on the second and fourth Wednesdays of each month.

As for Land to Hand’s new food pantry, it will be free for Columbia Falls students and families. It aims to expand upon the offerings the organization has long given out through its Backpack Program.

The Backpack Program sends more than 375 Columbia Falls students home on Thursdays with bags of food for the weekend. The students who receive that service are ones on free and reduced lunch. Land to Hand fills the bags with foods “high in protein, food with little to no preparation, and items that are kid friendly,” according to its website.

Emily Hess, Land to Hand’s Backpack Program manager, said the idea to open a food pantry came following feedback from families who use the program.

Hess said she heard from families who didn’t use items in the backpacks.

“In conversations with kids and parents, it was clear that one, healthier food options are generally preferred,” Hess said. The organization has a community produce fridge, which Hess said is popular.

“When we had fresh produce available and healthier things, it went so fast,” Hess said. “And so wanting to get out a little better choices and reduce waste. I know a lot of parents are bringing back cans of tuna, or they’re talking about cabinets full of boxes of mac and cheese that their kids aren’t into anymore. Just making it something that makes more sense for families.”

For now, Hess will stock the pantry with items she purchases in bulk from Costco, or that Land to Hand receives from the Montana Food Bank Network. Hess hopes in the future she’ll be able to work with a distributor to source the food pantry’s items.

Land to Hand will ask families who use the food pantry to fill out an intake form. Hess said most of the questions aim to gather demographic information about who’s using the service. Much of it will be optional to fill out.

Both offerings — the food pantry and the North Valley Food Bank mobile pantry stopping at the school — are part of an ecosystem of nonprofits geared at helping families in need in Columbia Falls, Hess and Mara Schradle, who handles Land to Hand’s Food for All program, said. Several organizations working on those challenges live in the old Glacier Gateway School, thanks to a project spearheaded by the Columbia Falls Kids Foundation. Working together on that front is important, Schradle said.

“I think a big part of it is just living in a rural place, there are so many factors and barriers to folks accessing programs,” Schradle said. “And you can’t, we can’t fix it all, so we have to work together to meet people where they’re at.”

Hess and Schradle said they have more ideas for using the space in the future. That includes bringing students and families into the kitchen space to learn to cook healthy meals. But for now, they’re focused on getting the food pantry up and running.

Hess plans to work with the Columbia Falls school district to make sure information about the pantry is available for students. She encouraged anyone with questions about the food pantry, Backpack Program, or interest in volunteering to reach out to the organization or follow along on social media.