As anticipated, the Kamloops-Thompson school board gave the green light to an initiative aiming to fill hungry children’s bellies.

Thanks to a Rotary Club of Kamloops Downtown project, NorKam will now host two dinners a month starting on Feb. 13.

The school board approved the six family dinners at NorKam with free use of its facilities.

The club came up with the idea as an alternative to a typical soup kitchen environment, whose regular clients can sometimes intimidate or scare young children, said president Christopher Seguin in his initial proposal to trustees.

He said the caring environment will also encourage parents to come despite fearing the stigma of being underprivileged.

After praising the idea, Trustee Cara McKelvey asked whether the club is fixed on the dinnertime of 7 p.m. She said that’s bedtime for her two small children.

Seguin said they’re reviewing the schedule and will probably have a 5:30 p.m. mealtime when the initiative is ready to launch.

The Rotary’s close ties to the Kamloops Food Bank will help with referring families in need as will school district newsletters.

The program may just be the beginning as district staff look at ways to bring food to schools for every low income student using a sustainable and inexpensive model, said assistant Supt. Karl deBruijn.