Hungry Shoreline students and their families fed by local churches

Shoreline School District is filled with families fighting to make ends meet.

Text and photos by Janelle Retka

Some students in the Shoreline School District get sent home with weekend food packages because of partnerships between schools and churches that have developed over the past few years. 

Lake Forest Park Presbyterian Church is one of many churches in the district that have launched partnership programs to help fill nutritional gaps for children in the community.

Leslie Eck, a founding member of the Lake Forest Park Presbyterian church’s partnership, organizes the monthly packing meetings, in which members of the congregation and church come together to prepare the food packs.

“Once students’ basic needs have been met, then they’re able to focus on school and learn,” said Aimee Miner, the principal at Lake Forest Park Elementary. 

“Knowing that they’re coming to school on Monday when bellies are full and they haven’t had to worry about food or where their next meal is going to come from is very reassuring to everyone.”

From homeless families to families in temporary need because of a changed marital or job status, Shoreline School District is filled with families fighting to make ends meet.

Serving Lake Forest Park Elementary and Brookside Elementary schools, Lake Forest Park Presbyterian has fed up to 94 students at one time throughout the course of the program that was launched in 2013.

Shoreline and Lake Forest Park are host to a variety of support programs, such as Hopelink, North Helpline, and the Center for Human Services. These programs offer a variety of resources to members of the community in need, including food banks, emergency services, eviction, utilities help and more.

Katherine Barnard, the family advocate at Lake Forest Park Elementary, explained that access to these resources is a huge issue, which is what makes food packages provided by the school so effective. 

When families can't find the time or transportation to get to food banks and other emergency services, consistent availability of nutritious food through the school goes a long way.

Aimee Miner, Principal at Lake Forest Park Elementary School, has seen improvements among students attendance and engagement since the launching of the food package partnership with Lake Forest Park Presbyterian Church


The weekend packs include six meals and two snacks, like peanut butter, tuna, crackers and apple sauce, that require little to no preparation so students without full kitchens can easily eat. Halal or vegetarian packages are also available to students with dietary restrictions, but allergy accommodations cannot currently be met.

The packages are meant to help support not only the student, but the rest of the family as well. They are delivered to the school on Friday morning so that kids can pick them up before heading home for the weekend.

Costing just under $10 to prepare each package, the approximate annual cost of running this program is $30,000 for Lake Forest Park Presbyterian, according to Kyle Bozick, one of the founding members and financial manager of the program.

One food package costs just under $10 to prepare, providing easy preparation nourishment to students and their families.


Miner says apprehensions about student confidentiality and potential complications with church involvement in the school setting have proved unfounded.

Miner and Barnard work with teachers to identify students in need, and participants receive parental waivers before being added to the anonymous list given to the church.

Donations are made to a bank account through the church. Proceeds go directly to the cost of the food, and there is no overhead cost, explained Pastor Frank Baresel of Lake Forest Park Presbyterian Church.  

“We want to be a partner in making life better for people in our community.”

Baresel said the next stage of the weekend food program will be establishing a team focused on finding funds for the program so it will be independent of the church’s fluctuating finances.

Kyle Bozick, who suggested launching the food package program at Lake Forest Park Presbyterian, is one of six founding members and manages the finances and coordination of the program.


Lake Forest Park Presbyterian’s program is run by its six founding members who split the responsibilities of organizing packing days, buying groceries, maintaining communication with the schools and managing the finances.

After hearing about Calvin Presbyterian Church in Shoreline’s program, where Polly Terman had originally launched a partnership food program with schools, Bozick suggested starting the program at Lake Forest Park.

Lake Forest Park Elementary School is one of 14 schools in the Shoreline School District, with all but three schools participating in food package partnership programs.


They began by providing 10 packages for Lake Forest Park Elementary but had to adjust quickly to meet the need. So far, Lake Forest Park Presbyterian has been able to provide for all of the students who wish to be a part of the program, according to Miner.

Calvin was the first church in the area to launch a food package partnership program in 2009, and has been integral in spreading the partnerships across the 14-school district. Only Highland Terrace Elementary, Syre Elementary, and Shorecrest High School do not have weekend food programs, according to Craig Degginger, spokesperson for Shoreline School District.

Terman says that Calvin’s program is meeting the needs of the most destitute students, and hopes there will be the resources eventually to help all students in need. She encourages churches and members of the community to get involved by contacting the family advocate at their local school.

“I don't know if people realize how caring the staff of these schools are,” said Terman. “They just work so hard for their kids trying to meet the needs that they have. And of course they are excited about having something they can do, too, to give them food.”