Twelve years ago, Brandy Buscher started at North Platte High School (NPHS) as the district’s homeless liaison, tasked to find students in need. Buscher discovered 78 students in the school district didn’t have the resources they needed to be successful at school or in the community.
After speaking with students to find the gaps, she partnered with local groups and teachers to start an essential items pantry. What began as a collection of non-perishable food has grown into a network of resources and support for a growing list of students in need.
Now, the pantry feeds between 25 and 40 students every week—and the list is growing. “We see kids come to school every day without those basic needs met,” said Amie Albrecht, school counselor at NPHS. “When they get here and they don’t have clean clothes or they didn’t have food that morning prior to getting here, we see the academics take a back seat.”
NPHS partners with the Walmart Distribution Center in North Platte, Nebraska, to provide products and food for the pantry. As the list of students in need grew and the donations kept coming in, NPHS noticed a problem—they needed more space.
In 2024, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska (BCBSNE) launched the Healthy Home Team initiative, a multi-year initiative to help high schools across the state with programs that focus on promoting student wellness, from creating calming spaces and school gardens to improving access to personal hygiene products. In its first year, the BCBSNE initiative provided 100 high schools with a $500 grant and one high school with a $5,000 grant to promote health and well-being programs in their communities.
In November 2024, NPHS was selected to receive the $5,000 grant for its plan to expand the school’s essential items pantry to include fresh, nutritious food options for students and families on campus. “Fresh produce is the hardest thing for our food-insecure students to get access to,” said Aaron McCoy, activities director at NPHS. “When we put our team together, we’re able to look at things that help normalize these kids’ lives. This grant helps us round out and take our pantry to the next level by offering fresh produce items.”
The impact of the grant reflects BCBSNE’s mission to champion the health and well-being of its members and the communities it serves through initiatives like those at NPHS. “The future of our state lies with Nebraska’s students,” said Jeff Russell, president and CEO of BCBSNE. “Healthy Home Team allows us to support meaningful programs through our schools that make a real difference in the lives of students and their families—both now and for generations to come.”
BCBSNE recently announced the next round of 100 high schools to receive $500 Healthy Home Team grants. By 2026, the company hopes to reach all 309 Nebraska high schools, contributing over $165,000 in direct funding to support communities statewide. See the full list of 2025 Healthy Home Team schools at NebraskaBlue.com/HealthyHomeTeam.
