The Kalamalka Starfish Society has been feeding youth in the North Okanagan for nine years, but with costs currently exceeding their income, the volunteers are looking for support so that students can keep getting the weekend nutrition they need.
A spring fundraiser has been launched for the North Okanagan Starfish Program with the aim of gathering funds over and above the money generated from the regular Christmas fundraiser so that the program can keep pace with escalating costs.
The program provides a bag of weekend food for about 225 students each week, providing food security on days when school programs and food banks are not available. Bags are filled with fruits, vegetables and nutritious items that are easy to prepare. The team is always looking to optimize the food bags; they recently added two cans of tuna to the menu after a dietician suggested reducing sugar and salt and boosting protein content.
Each bag contains two breakfasts, two lunches, two dinners, and produce for a family of four.
Society president Mary Jackson told The Morning Star the program is free for students and their families to utilize, but it costs about $25 per student to run for a total of more than $5,000 each week (over 92 per cent of the program's costs are for groceries).
That means the society heavily relies on donations and peer-to-peer fundraisers 鈥� and they've received plenty of support, including a $25,000 donation from Community Foundation North Okanagan last year, and a $10,000 donation from Vernon philanthropists Lloyd Davies and Janet Armstrong. Vernon's Save-On-Foods also provides food at a discounted cost, which helps make the program possible.
But providing weekly high-quality nutrition is an increasingly expensive endeavour.
Darryl O'Brian, the society's operation manager, said the tariff trade war instigated by U.S. President Donald Trump with Canada is already leading to higher costs for the Starfish program, as well as product shortages 鈥� problems the society is trying to work around.
"We're noticing two or three-penny increases on everything," O'Brian said. "The carrots we give out are coming from California, so we're going to maybe switch that to long English cucumbers from B.C."
O'Brian said tariffs haven't had a huge impact yet, "but I think they will."
He added the society likes to have funds a year in advance of when they'll actually use them, and they are currently raising funds for the balance of 2025 with an uncertain world of tariff impact in mind.
More than 40 volunteer packers and drivers help make the program possible, and Keith Construction on Aberdeen Road in Coldstream has been an enormous help, having found a place on their property for the society to house its packing facility every week, where drivers pick up food to deliver to 20 different North Okanagan locations. The construction company also provides regular monetary support to the society.
"The Starfish community team is amazing, they do such good work and they're so nice to deal with, and it's not a headache for us," said Bryce Dahlen, owner and general manager of Keith Construction. "We feel fortunate that we're able to support in the way we do."
Jackson said if you want to find out how much the program means to kids 鈥� one in five of which experience food insecurity 鈥� just talk to a teacher in one of the schools the program supports.
鈥淭eachers love the program because they know the kids in need in their classrooms will be fed on the weekend," said one school principal. "Parents are very appreciative. When children are well fed their behaviour problems decrease right away and their ability to focus increases.鈥�
One meal bag recipient with three kids and two adults in their family said they were grateful for the service Starfish provides.
"Without this program my family would be lost," the recipient said.
Businesses or organizations that are interested in undertaking fundraising for Starfish can contact kalamalkastarfishsociety@gmail.com. To donate online, go to . Learn more about the program and its impact at .
