Behind the backpacks
Community comes together to fight childhood hunger
At Wright County Area United Way, we are committed to creating lasting change right here in our local communities of Albertville, St. Michael, Monticello, and Buffalo. By investing donations locally, we support programs that address the root causes of challenges in the areas of food, shelter, health, and education. Each month, we highlight one of our valued grantees to show how your generosity is making a difference close to home. This past December, we went behind the scenes of the wRight Choice Backpack Buddies Program to share how our community comes together to fight childhood hunger and support our students.
As the holiday season approached—a time of warmth, generosity, and togetherness—important work happened quietly behind the scenes in our community. Work that ensured local children didn’t go hungry when school doors closed over the holiday break. This is the heart of the wRight Choice Backpack Buddies Program—and it is powered by the Wright County Area United Way Community Partner Grant, along with the collective efforts of schools, businesses, students, and volunteers who believe every child deserves consistent access to food.
What is Backpack Buddies?
Backpack Buddies exists for one simple but powerful reason: to reduce the effects of childhood hunger. The program provides nutritious, easy-to-prepare food to students living in food-insecure homes across the Buffalo-Hanover-Montrose Schools, ensuring they have access to meals when school breakfast and lunch programs aren’t available.
Each backpack is filled with hope—and food—designed to get students through weekends and extended breaks with dignity and nourishment.
Why did the program begin?
Eight plus years ago, educators and community leaders recognized a growing need. Too many students were returning to school on Mondays hungry, tired, and unable to focus—not because of a lack of care at home, but because of a lack of access to food. Backpack Buddies was created to fill that gap.
Since then, the need has dramatically increased, especially following the COVID-19 pandemic, rising inflation, and the winding down of federal aid programs. Today, the program supports 75 households, over 150 students every week, and 600-plus students every month. More than 21,500 backpacks have been distributed over the last eight years.
What goes into a backpack and what is the impact?
Each backpack typically includes two breakfasts, two lunches, and healthy snacks. Items are carefully chosen to be nutritious, shelf-stable, and easy to prepare. Menus rotate to provide variety and balance, mirroring what students would normally receive during a school day.
When children have consistent access to food, the impact is powerful, including improved concentration and focus, better academic performance, reduced anxiety and stress, and healthier brain development during critical growth years.
Where does the food come from?
This program wouldn’t be possible without a strong network of partners working together to stretch every dollar and maximize impact.
Second Harvest Heartland and the Buffalo Food Shelf: Through Second Harvest’s large-scale sourcing and buying power, Backpack Buddies is able to acquire high-quality food at significantly reduced costs. Retail partnerships and rescued surplus food help ensure resources go further—reaching more students with every order.
Cub – Buffalo: Cub plays a key role by making community giving easy and accessible. Pre-made Backpack Buddies donation bags are available for purchase in-store, allowing shoppers to turn everyday grocery trips into direct support for local students. These donations go straight into backpacks that are packed and distributed throughout the school year.
Powered by Partnerships
Community partnerships are the backbone of Backpack Buddies.
Centra Sota Cooperative: We are incredibly grateful to Centra Sota Coop, the Nutra Blend MVP program, and their customers and suppliers for their generous donation of $2,592.86. Their commitment to giving back to local communities has played a significant role in supporting our wRight Choice Backpack Buddies program, which provides essential food assistance to children in need.
In addition to the financial support, Centra Sota Coop staff, along with wRight Choice students and staff, helped pack over 70 Thanksgiving food bags for participating households. Each family also received a $30 Cub (Buffalo) meat voucher, further assisting in meeting their nutritional needs.
SouthPoint Financial Credit Union - Buffalo Branch: A full-service, not-for-profit financial institution serving members since 1936. As friends, family, and neighbors in the community, SouthPoint is committed to advocating for financial well-being and supporting programs that strengthen families. Their generosity and volunteerism help ensure backpacks get packed and delivered.
Wright County Area United Way: Backpack Buddies is powered by the United Way Community Partner Grant, providing critical funding that directly supports food purchases and long-term program sustainability. Donations made through United Way stay local and help ensure students remain fed, healthy, and ready to learn.
Anita Trutwin: Work-Based Training Coordinator at Buffalo Hanover Montrose (BHM) Schools – Through the On-the-Job Training (OJT)/Work-Based Learning partnership, students support Backpack Buddies with packing, delivery, and logistics while building essential workforce skills such as teamwork, communication, and responsibility.
Central Minnesota Jobs and Training Services (CMJTS): In partnership with leaders like Jodi Lee, CMJTS connects workforce development with meaningful community service opportunities. Central Minnesota Jobs and Training Services (CMJTS) mission focuses on providing workforce development, increasing employability, and meeting employer needs through services like career counseling, job search assistance, training programs, and connecting to local resources in their 11-county service area, including Wright County.
Vision of Buffalo: Branch Manager: Kimi Paumen and Routing Manager: Jim O’Neill and supporting staff/bus drivers.
Culvers – Buffalo: We appreciate Culver’s of Buffalo for generously donating basket value meals to students and staff who volunteer their time to support Wright Choice Backpack Buddies.
Wright County Court Administration Employees: wRight Choice Backpack Buddies received a donation of 400 plus non-perishable food items on behalf of employees from Wright County Court Administration department during the month of November at the Wright County Justice Center in Buffalo. Food items were distributed to participating families for winter break in late December.
BHM teachers and staff: BHM school building staff, along with special education classes from BHS, help support backpack buddies by picking up empty backpacks to get filled weekly and deliver them to our school sites.
Students Helping Students
One of the most powerful parts of the program happens during packing days. Students from wRight Choice and On-the-Job Training (OJT) programs help pack, deliver, and manage backpacks using an efficient assembly-line process. Through this hands-on experience, students gain workforce skills like punctuality, teamwork, and task completion, along with leadership, communication, and a deep sense of empathy, purpose, and pride.
wRight Choice staff Nate Hanson–Lead Teacher and Raquel Groethen–ESP play a critical role in daily operations and student supervision. Together, they help students successfully manage Backpack Buddies daily tasks while reinforcing responsibility and community engagement.
Impact on Students and Families
For families facing food insecurity, these backpacks provide relief. For students, they offer reassurance and stability. When students receive a backpack, the reaction is often the same: gratitude, relief, and reduced anxiety. Knowing there will be food over the weekend allows children to return to school ready to learn, grow, and thrive.
How You Can Get Involved
Visit Cub in Buffalo and purchase a pre-made Backpack Buddies donation bag located at the front of the store.
Monetary donations help fund Backpack Buddies through the Community Partner Grant along with many other programs in the community. Every dollar donated stays local and supports students across the BHM School District.
For those interested in donating visit: www.wcauw.org.
For more information contact Nate Hanson at: nhanson@bhmschools.org.
Thanks to the volunteers, partners, and donors, students had nutritious meals and snacks when school was out this holiday season. Together, we’re making food insecurity a little easier—and our community a whole lot stronger. Thank you for being part of this incredible mission.
