Idaho Gives Drive Launches Statewide to Benefit North Idaho Nonprofits Through May 7
COEUR D’ALENE, Idaho — The annual Idaho Gives fundraising drive launched today, May 3, giving residents across Kootenai County and North Idaho an opportunity to financially support local nonprofits through May 7. The statewide initiative, a program of the Idaho Community Foundation, is designed to raise money and awareness for Idaho nonprofits — and roughly 110 organizations from the North Idaho Panhandle region are participating this year.
Meals on Wheels Volunteers Keep Kootenai County Seniors Fed
Among the participating organizations is Lake City Center, a Coeur d’Alene-based nonprofit whose programs depend heavily on community volunteers. Every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday, volunteers fan out across Coeur d’Alene, Post Falls, Hayden, Huetter, Hauser, and Dalton Gardens to deliver roughly 5,000 meals per month to seniors who might otherwise go without.
Harriet and Tom Dillon are among the volunteers keeping 1 of 17 Meals on Wheels routes running in Kootenai County. For them, the work is about far more than food.
“We check on ’em, talk to ’em, get to know them a little bit. Make sure they get fed,” Tom Dillon said, as reported by the Coeur d’Alene Press. “A lot of these people don’t eat unless we deliver the meals to them.”
Lake City Center Executive Director Nancy Phillips said senior programming at the center is built on volunteer labor. In-person congregate meals alone generate between 200 and 220 volunteer hours each month, while the Meals on Wheels program accounts for an additional 190 to 200 monthly volunteer hours.
“We provide meals, the social connection and the supportive services so that they can remain independent as long as possible while engaging with others in the community,” Phillips said.
Phillips noted that community partners — including the 3rd Avenue Marketplace and area churches — help fill funding gaps. “It’s a lot of outside help that’s needed. Thankfully, we have a community that likes to give,” she said.
Panhandle Special Needs Serves Rural Communities, Eyes New Building
Also participating in Idaho Gives is Panhandle Special Needs (PSN), an agency providing disability services across Bonner and Boundary counties and portions of Kootenai County, stretching as far north as Athol.
Executive Director Trinity Nicholson said PSN serves approximately 200 people per year, offering life skills training, adult day health services, and employment and training programs. The agency’s client base relies on staff for essential daily needs.
“Folks also depend on us for essential services and to go grocery shopping, to cook their meals. We can’t just not show up,” Nicholson said. “We just find a way, we have to find our way.”
Demand for services outpaces current capacity — roughly 40 names currently sit on the agency’s waitlist. PSN is hoping to leverage the Idaho Gives campaign to help fund a new building; the organization’s Sandpoint facility is under a lease with approximately seven years remaining.
“It’s a big part of why we participate in Idaho Gives — we’re trying to build a new building,” Nicholson said.
PSN is also offering community members additional ways to show support this week. Plants from the agency’s Greenhouse program go on sale beginning May 5, and hanging baskets will be available during a May 7 restaurant takeover at Smokesmith Bar-B-Que.
Impact on Kootenai County Residents
The Idaho Gives drive reflects the deep-rooted culture of civic generosity that defines communities throughout North Idaho. For many vulnerable residents — elderly seniors in Coeur d’Alene relying on meal delivery, or adults with disabilities in rural Bonner County — these nonprofits are not supplemental services. They are essential lifelines. As state and federal budget pressures continue — including ongoing discussions about Medicaid restructuring, such as the Idaho governor’s recent signing of Medicaid work requirement legislation — locally supported nonprofits carry increasing importance in filling service gaps.
The drive also highlights the power of private community giving as an alternative to government-funded programs, allowing donors to direct resources to organizations they trust and see working firsthand in their own neighborhoods.
What Comes Next
Idaho Gives runs through Wednesday, May 7, 2026. Residents across Kootenai County and the broader Panhandle region can browse participating nonprofits and make direct donations online at www.idahogives.org. With approximately 110 North Idaho organizations participating, donors have broad options for directing their contributions toward causes that matter most to their communities — from senior services and disability support to local faith organizations and youth programs.
For North Idaho community news including public safety updates — such as the recent appointment of a new Coeur d’Alene Fire Chief — visit Kootenai County News at IdahoNewsNetwork.com.