Forest Area Teen Closet Feeds, Clothes Students in Need

What started with a small closet has grown into something much bigger.

The Forest Area School staff knew some of their students were missing things. Some weren’t getting dinner at home, some didn’t have a winter coat when they went to go play at recess. So the Forest Area Schools started a clothing and food closet.

Stacy Muth is a Forest Area graduate herself and works in the office and as a coach at the school. She brought food and sent her kids home with something to eat for the night, and asked friends for clothing donations when she saw a need.

“There’s a huge need and we found out that kids weren’t eating dinner, and it just grew from there,” said Muth. “We are just trying to provide for our kids every day so we started this teen closet. And there’s a big need for something like this in this community, the food the clothing, the supplies.”

Her donations started to grow, and now there’s a stocked pantry and closet that kids can visit whenever they need to.

“Whether you are really poor, or just really hungry, it doesn’t matter to us, if you need a snack we’re going to get it for you. If you need a winter hat and coat, gloves, boots, if you need something, we will get it.  No questions asked here,” said Muth. “It’s so exciting to see the community responding really well to this.”

Many of Muth’s students don’t have health insurance, either. The school put a medical clinic on campus to help. They offer sick visits, sports physicals, x-ray and lab work and counseling.

“They have a counselor on-site that comes in and we have kids that see counselors regularly. Or if there are issues that just blow up at the moment they can come in and get those taken care of as well,” said Muth.

If you want to donate to the Forest Area Teen Closet, visit  or drop by the Forest Area Middle and High School during school hours.