Students in the Northern Lehigh School District won’t go hungry courtesy of a charitable offering.

Superintendent Dr. Matthew J. Link said at Monday’s school board meeting that the $10,000 donation came from the Lehigh Valley Educators Credit Union.

“The Lehigh Valley Educators credit Union has again this year very generously donated $10,000 to our Backpack Buddies program to help us ensure that no student has to struggle with meal security,” Link said. “We are extremely appreciative of their ongoing support.”

School board member Gary Fedorcha, who sits on the Credit Union’s board, presented the ceremonial check to Nichole Fink, food service director.

“On behalf of the credit union, as vice president, I want to thank our members and our board for being able to give these out to seven of our school districts for a wonderful program that you do,” Fedorcha said.

Fink thanked Fedorcha, as well as the Lehigh Valley Educators Credit Union, for the donation.

Link added that it “will do so much good in our community for our students and their families.”

After the meeting, Fink said the donation is “huge for our families in the district. Lehigh Valley Education Credit Union has played a huge role is allowing us to continue this program again this year due to their generous donation.”

Fink said that Backpack Buddies is a program that was started to provide nonperishable food and beverages for needy students to take home every Friday for the weekend.

“Each week myself, members of our food service staff, and most recently our cafeteria monitors work together to put the bags each week to be distributed to each school, and the bags go home with the students on Fridays,” Fink said. “Every year, Giant Food Stores donates cases of grocery bags for us to use for the program.”

Fink said the program is offered districtwide, and that this year they are serving just shy of 100 students each week. Last year, food was given out to about 158 every week.

“We’re able to provide meals, snacks, breakfast items, juices, dry milk, all the food groups,” she said. “It’s a team effort.”