A Heartfelt Reflection on the Recent Donation from Flathead Electric’s Ribeye Raffle
This past week has been amazing here at the Northwest Montana Veterans Food Pantry and Stand Down! You know, with everything going on, helping our veterans get the support they need, from food boxes to clothing and all that, sometimes it’s these unexpected boosts that really remind us why we do what we do. And boy, did we get a big one yesterday! On the 28th of August, we received this incredible donation from Flathead Electric Cooperative as part of their annual Ribeye Raffle. More than just the meat or the cash; it’s about the community coming together for those who’ve served our country.
Let me back up a bit. For those who might not know, the Ribeye Raffle is this cool fundraiser Flathead Electric has been running for 10 years now. They buy livestock from local kids at the Northwest Montana Fair and Lincoln County Fair, you know, supporting the young 4-H and FFA folks, and then they raffle off the fancy cuts like ribeyes and t-bones. The rest? It all gets ground up and donated to food banks like ours, along with all the money from ticket sales. This year, they raised over $21,000 in cash and about 1,000 pounds of meat! Can you believe it? That’s going to help so many veterans and their families who are struggling right now, especially with food prices being what they are (I saw Super 1 hamburger for over $6/lb the other day!)
We’re one of seven food banks that benefit from this: us, the Flathead Food Bank, North Valley in Whitefish, and others. It’s amazing how this event has grown; over the decade, it’s tallied up to more than $111,000 and 10,000 pounds of meat. For us at the Veterans Pantry, this means we can stock up on high-quality protein that our folks really appreciate. Veterans come in here sometimes just needing a hand up, not a handout, and stuff like this makes a real difference. It helps us keep our doors open from 10 AM to 3 PM Monday through Friday, distributing those nutritious boxes and even helping with household items for the newly housed or homeless vets.
A huge, huge thank you has to go out to Flathead Electric Cooperative for making this happen year after year. Their team, from the folks buying the animals at the fair to everyone organizing the raffle, you guys are heroes in your own right. And let’s not forget the contributors, the kids raising the livestock, the people buying tickets (even if they didn’t win those steaks!), and all the local partners who make the fairs possible. Without you, we wouldn’t have this level of support. Special shoutout to the winners this year, Frederick Cerra from Whitefish and Laird Reed from Kalispell, enjoy those ribeyes, and know that your participation helped feed so many.
We’ve been posting about this on social media because we want everyone to see the impact. Check out our heartfelt thanks on Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/p/DN50ZuckQT_/ It’s got all the details about how this donation is helping us and the other food banks. We might have more updates on our Facebook too (facebook.com/veteransfoodpantry), so give us a follow if you haven’t already. It’s moments like these that keep us going, reminding us that the community has our backs just like our veterans had ours.
If you’re a veteran in need or want to volunteer, swing by our spot at 1349 Hwy 2 East in Kalispell. We’re always here, rain or shine, and donations like this one from Flathead Electric make it all possible. Thanks again, everyone, let’s keep building on this momentum!
