The Wood River Valley has a reputation for being a bit of its own wealthy nation, full of second homeowners and ski bums, all living the good life. And, in truth, most of us live quite well and we are grateful for it. Yet surprisingly, when it comes to hunger in the Wood River Valley the statistics are not pretty.
- Last year, 32% of children in the Blaine County School District qualified for free or reduced-price lunches. That’s around 1 in 3 kids.
- 250 children in Blaine County live in poverty.
- The average yearly wage for a woman in Idaho is $12,500. This is less than $6 per hour and is 49.8% of the average man's wages, and ranks as the LOWEST average hourly wage for women in the country. US Census Bureau, 2000
- 1 in 4 people in a soup kitchen line is a child. School-age children who experience severe hunger earn poorer grades and suffer higher levels of chronic illness, depression, and behavior problems than children with no hunger. America's Second Harvest, 2003
Tough choices faced by those served by the Idaho Food Bank:
- 37% had to choose between paying for food and paying their rent or mortgage.
- 38% had to choose between paying for food and paying for medicine or medical care.
- 56% had to choose between paying for food and paying for utilities/heating fuel.
- Over a 12 month period, 72% of the demand for food assistance in Blaine County occurred between the winter months of October-March.
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