Ladies Club assists in community needs
The Bigfork Food Bank received its first donation toward a new building Monday morning.
The Bigfork Ladies Service Club presented a check for $5,000 to the Food Bank’s building fund Monday morning, before continuing to distribute $12,000 in donations to local organizations.
The Bigfork Ladies Service Club fundraises every year to raise money to benefit the community, much of which they distributed this week.
Besides starting out the Bigfork Food Bank’s building fund, they donated $1,000 to Ray of Hope, Sparrows Nest, the Veterans Food Pantry and Aces After School program as well as $700 to Save-a-Sister.
“We’re really trying to help out organizations that aren’t funded,” president Chris Easton said. “We try to make our money go as far as it possibly can.”
The Ladies Service club has been in Bigfork for around 60 years, Easton said, and used to be known as the Bigfork Lady Lions, though they were never associated with the National Lions Club.
Anywhere they see a need, the Ladies Service club tries to help out. Besides distributing their fundraised dollars the club also donated money for dinners to Young Life, provides the chili during the Bigfork Elves decorating day, provides a lunch for the Bigfork Summer Playhouse actors when they arrive and sponsor a $2,500 scholarship to Flathead Valley Community college for a Bigfork graduate going into healthcare, to name a few.
The club’s biggest fundraiser is a booth at the Flathead County fair in the summer, which they let other non-profits work at for a portion of the proceeds. They also sell Herbergers coupon books.
The Ladies Service Club is always welcoming new members to join their efforts. They hold monthly meetings from September to May on the first Monday of every month at 5 p.m. at the Bigfork Chamber of Commerce.
The $5,000 donation to the Bigfork Food Bank is the largest donation the group is making this year.
The Bigfork Food Bank has recently become an independent food bank rather than a pantry under the Flathead Food Bank. An anonymous donor purchased land for the food bank recently to construct a new building that is more suited to their needs.
The Food Bank is working to fundraise all of the money needed for construction of the building.
Donations for the food bank building can be mailed to P.O. Box 850, Bigfork MT, 59911.
Anyone wishing to join the Bigfork Ladies Service Club can either just come to a meeting or contact Easton at 837-1010.