STORY AND PHOTOS BY KAREN BOSSICK

Deborah Van Law was ecstatic to learn that her Blaine County Education Foundation had been selected as a beneficiary of the Sun Valley Tour de Force’s Cars and Comedy fundraiser on Saturday, July 25, at the Limelight Hotel.

It seemed somehow fitting that an organization that has quietly hovered under the radar for so many years is to be supported by a weekend characterized by the high-pitched revs and the deep roar of sports cars.

Hers is an organization that has that has been keeping Blaine County students fed, equipped and headed toward college for more than three decades.

Deborah Van Law, in the red, poses with board members Reed Boeger, Elizabeth Herrick, Scott Molinaroli, Sara Gilman and Hilary Sinnamon (back row) and Monica Wray, Megan Stevenson and Jessica Maynard (front row).

The Blaine County Education Foundation has been around since 1992 and has delivered roughly $5.5 million in support to students across the Blaine County School District, ensuring access to school lunches, pencils and other school supplies and football uniforms and other extracurricular activity needs.

Van Law recently held a gathering for supporters at the Sun Valley Culinary Institute where she told attendees about the program over wine and cheese bites.

The foundation's work spans three programs aimed at catching students who fall through the cracks of federal funding in a county where the cost of living far outstrips national averages.

The largest is the Students in Need program, which includes a school meals initiative covering 450 to 500 students each year. Federal free meal guidelines require a family of four to earn less than $42,000 to qualify — a threshold that eliminates many Blaine County families who still struggle to put nutritious meals on the table because of the high price of rent, groceries and gas in the Wood River Valley.

Massey Glenne and Elizabeth Herrick talked about how impressed they were with the organization.

"We capture the people that don't qualify for free or reduced lunch at the federal level but are still kind of income-stressed here in Blaine County," said Blaine County School District Superintendent Jim Foudy, who joined Van Law at the podium.

Filling the gap when it comes to school lunches amounts to roughly $100,000 a year for families on the margin, Foudy said, and it allows students to walk through the lunch line with dignity rather than watching a negative balance climb higher with every meal.

"In a way, you could say that that one action has positively impacted the mental health of a lot of our families that are on these margins," he said.

The foundation also runs a backpack program that distributes school supplies to families the week before school starts, marshaling some 40 volunteers to organize what Van Law described, with a laugh, as "$11,000 worth of crayons" and a mountain of supplies.

School Superintendent Jim Foudy had a big smile as he discussed the can-do attitude of the organization.

Such partners as the Hunger Coalition and Far + Wise help identify families who need the help.

Then there is the Can Do program, which Van Law called her personal favorite. It covers the costs that can quietly exclude students from full participation, including sports fees, instrument rentals, field trips and graduation regalia.

"When I was young, field trips cost money, and I didn't get to go sometimes," she said. "This is the kind of thing we want to make sure our kids always have access to."

She credited the district's teachers, social workers, bus drivers and custodians as the eyes and ears on the ground.

Hilary Nickum and Christine Kraatz were among the attendees.

"The one and a half of us could not have that kind of impact," she said, referring to herself and her part-time operations manager Monica Wray. "It's our teachers who are helping us do that."

The foundation also provides $120,000 annually to classroom and school programs throughout the district and maintains an emergency social worker fund that helps remove barriers to attendance, providing gas money for families who live too far from a bus route and emergency food when a family hits a rough patch.

BCEF awarded 60 individual scholarships totaling $187,750 to students at all three of the district's high schools — Wood River, Carey and Silver Creek. Combined with other scholarship programs the foundation helped administer roughly 123 scholarships worth about $400,000 that were awarded this year.

"Half of the kids who applied for scholarships were awarded something," Van Law said. "I don't know in what other community that could be the case."

She emphasized that scholarships are not reserved for 4.0 students with a roster of AP classes. "We want kids to know that there is something out there for them," she said.

Foudy recalled the emotional rollercoaster of learning Van Law was leaving her teaching position at Alturas Elementary several years ago — and the relief of discovering she was becoming BCEF's executive director instead. "It didn't take me long to come right back up," he said. "So glad that I still get to work with Deb in this capacity."

Unfortunately, that won’t be the case for long. Van Law will be stepping down this fall as she and her husband relocate to Boise to be closer to family. The foundation is now searching for a new executive director.

Even as she prepares to make her exit Van Law reminded her audience of the need to step up for education. Idaho still ranks dead last among all 50 states and the District of Columbia in education funding. Eighty percent of Idaho school districts operate on a levy system, returning to voters every two years just to keep the lights on. Blaine County passed its levy last November, preserving preschool, full-day kindergarten, cybersecurity and school resource officers — none of which are funded by the state.

"I think it's important to remember we're dead last," Van Law said. "And I just hope everybody understands how fortunate all of us are that Blaine County schools still have art teachers, music teachers, labs and one-to-one devices — resources many Idaho schools have lost.

Donations to the foundation are tax deductible, with an existing Idaho state tax credit of up to $1,000 per individual donor. Beginning in January 2027, a new federal tax credit of up to $1,700 will also apply.

"We are that educational institution that you can donate to," she said.

Leslie Silva, who attended the event, summed up the spirit of the evening.

"How could I not be here?" she said. "It's vital that we show up for our youth, our community. Mental health is an issue, huge budget cuts in education, higher food costs — BCEF has the pulse on all of it. They have a direct line to the kids, teachers and faculty, and the families. They know the greatest needs. A village showed up at this event. Isn't that heartwarming?"