KidsPak, the Loveland nonprofit that grew from a small operation handing out bags of food to a few dozen students to a community pillar that has now provided more than a million meals to local youth, celebrated its continued growth Thursday afternoon at its new facility.

“We’ve been basically sleeping on other people’s couches,” said executive director Jennifer Blando. Since its foundation in 2009, the nonprofit has relied on goodwill from other institutions in town like the Larimer Food Bank and The Forge Campus in south Loveland.

During that time, Kids-Pak, which packs and delivers meals to families of Thompson School District students experiencing food insecurity, grew and attracted enough volunteers and donations to go from providing 34 bags of food for the last few weekends of the 2009 school year to a sprawling organization capable of preparing more than 600 bags of food per week for local youth.

But the lack of a steady place to call home has always weighed on the organization’s leadership, Blando, the first paid employee that the growing nonprofit has hired, said Thursday.

The new facility, located in north Loveland, is set to open for operation later this spring, and will ensure KidsPak’s ability to continue to provide food to students in need for the next 20 years, when she expects demand to increase.

“When you look at exploding population growth and the rise of things like rent and the cost of living, we create a margin of safety,” she said. “A blown tire can send you into a financial tailspin, and Kids-Pak can help fill the gap with food and groceries during that time.”

The newly constructed $2.8 million facility located at 250 69th Court was funded by a capital project that received support from a variety of sources including private foundations, individual donors and municipal governments.

Larimer County donated $250,000 in federally allocated COVID-19 relief funds, and the city of Loveland donated $75,000 and waived a $103,700 building fee for the new facility.

Still, Blando said, the capital project is only around 70% complete, and more funding is necessary to finish paying for the new building.

Several high-profile speakers — including Larimer County Commissioner Jody Shadduck- McNally, Thompson School District Superintendent Marc Schaffer and Loveland Mayor Jacki Marsh — addressed a gathered crowd Thursday after a period of live music, wine and hors d’oeuvre catered by Berthoud High School students, but it was Tom Carrigan, founder of KidsPak, and his wife Corinne who received the warmest reception.

“I don’t know how you can say thank you to so many volunteers,” Carrigan said. “In 14 years, we’re at 200,000 volunteer hours. Whether its 5 degrees or 105 degrees, the distribution team on Wednesday morning out at the Forge. We’ve got 15 trucks to get the food out. Those are the most reliable, stand up people you’ll ever meet.”

Carrigan thanked a variety of supporters in his address to the gathered crowd, but teared up slightly when he thanked his wife, who has been integral to KidsPak since its founding.

When he finished, Carrigan received a standing ovation.