A favorite haunt of many, the Spar restaurant is a great place for great food as well as espresso, beer wine and cocktails. In fact, for nearly 100 years, the Spar has served hot meals and cold brews to patrons of the South Puget Sound

In that 100 years, the Spar has seen a lot, but perhaps nothing quite like the pandemic. “Like so many others, our business has slowed down, we had to let some folks go and have had to transition to more take out,” says owner Adrielle Flinders. “We’ve owned The Spar for 30 years and we’ve never had to do that before.”

Healing through food is something close to Flinders heart. And that is why Flinders and The Spar jumped at the opportunity to give back. With Columbia Bank picking up the tab, Flinders says, “We are passing it on to local children by providing them freshly prepared boxed lunches. Kids have been negatively affected in so many ways by COVID, so with Columbia Bank’s help, we are going to make sure that at least they have some good food to see them through their day.”