Weekend Hunger in My Neighborhood | Bellevue
24 schools | 920 students
When you think about Bellevue, food insecurity probably isn’t the first thing that comes to mind.
Bellevue is home to major employers, beautiful neighborhoods, and some of the highest household incomes in the region. But that bigger picture can make it easy to overlook people who are struggling to make ends meet.
Why does weekend hunger happen in Bellevue?
During the school week, thousands of children rely on breakfast and lunch at school. Much of the city is thriving, with a median household income of more than $165,000. But 7.2% of Bellevue residents still live below the federal poverty line.
Behind that percentage are working households, students living with relatives or friends, young people experiencing housing instability, unaccompanied youth, and people experiencing homelessness.
For some students, “home” may not mean one fixed address. Bellevue School District supports students experiencing homelessness who may be staying in temporary housing or shelters, living in vehicles, or living independently without a parent or guardian.
Cost of living matters
Housing places significant pressure on household budgets. The City of Bellevue reports that 31.8% of households spend more than 30% of their income on housing, and more than 45% of renters are housing-cost burdened.
When housing, childcare, transportation, utilities and groceries are all competing for limited resources, it can become difficult to consistently afford enough food. For young people living independently or moving between temporary living situations, those pressures can look different, but the need for reliable food remains the same.
Bellevue schools are an important part of the local food-security network. During the 2026–27 school year, six Bellevue schools offer breakfast and lunch at no cost to every student, while eligible students across the rest of Bellevue School District can also receive free or reduced-price meals. When students need food outside the school week, Backpack Brigade helps meet that need.
SNAP and Washington’s Basic Food program are also critical parts of the food-security safety net, helping people stretch limited grocery budgets.
But not every family experiencing food insecurity qualifies for these programs.
According to Feeding America’s 2026 Map the Meal Gap, nearly half of people experiencing food insecurity nationwide have incomes too high to qualify for SNAP.
That distinction matters in a place like Bellevue.
Someone can earn too much to qualify for some forms of assistance and still struggle with the combined cost of housing, transportation, utilities, healthcare and food. Young people experiencing housing instability may face an entirely different set of circumstances. No single program can meet every person’s needs.
That is why a strong local network matters.
What does Backpack Brigade do in Bellevue?
We partner with schools to provide weekend food to more than 920 students every week.
Before food reaches a student, we work with school counselors and staff to understand individual needs, maintain quality, and reduce waste. That school-based model is especially important because it allows support to be centered on the student, not on what their household or what their living situation looks like.
Volunteers then pack and deliver weekend hunger bags to schools across Bellevue.
Students can choose from 11 different menus, designed around cultural and dietary needs, including a Build-a-Bag option that gives students more choice in what they take with them for the weekend.
What can one gift do?
A lot.
We aren’t solving food insecurity with a single gift. Every donation is part of a collective commitment that includes monthly donors, weekly volunteers, schools, community partners, and local businesses.
Together, that commitment allows us to imagine a future where weekend hunger doesn’t exist. Through bulk purchasing and negotiated pricing, Backpack Brigade can provide enough food to support one student through an entire weekend for $7.50.
That means there is no such thing as a gift too small to matter. Every donation, volunteer shift, and partnership allows us to meet the needs of students' week after week.
Public nutrition programs, schools, nonprofits, volunteers, businesses, and individual donors each play a different role. Backpack Brigade’s role is specific: making sure students have food when they leave school for the weekend, regardless of where or with whom they are spending it.
For the 920 Bellevue students we currently serve, that community commitment means reliable food is there when they need it.
You can be part of that commitment. Give $7.50 to provide weekend food for one student, become a monthly donor to help us show up week after week, or
adopt a Bellevue school to support students throughout the year.
Choose how you want to make an impact and make a weekend without hunger possible for a Bellevue student.
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