The students on Lisa Thiel’s Destination ImagiNation team don’t look much like white knights, but their determination to help other youths has made them heroes in Mike Baker’s eyes.

“This group is kind of coming to our rescue this year,” said Baker, the director of Kalispell Parks and Recreation.

Five Kalispell Middle School students have set out to double the Parks and Rec scholarship fund, which helps children who might not otherwise be able to afford it participate in programs from swim lessons to ice skating.

They are raising money as part of this year’s Destination ImagiNation Project Outreach challenge.

Destination ImagiNation is a nonprofit organization that encourages teamwork and creative problem-solving. Teams choose one challenge to solve and design unique ways to approach the puzzle.

Most challenges tend to be hypothetical, but this year’s KMS team chose to tackle a real-life problem in their community.

“That’s why this year is so exciting,” said Thiel, who has coached Destination ImagiNation teams for several years.

Teams put hours of effort into solving problems and building props, most of which are torn down or thrown away at the end of the program, she explained. This year’s team wanted to do something a little more lasting.

They thought, “Even if we don’t make it to [the global finals competition in] Knoxville this year, at least we’ve left something concrete behind,” Thiel said. “They actually got that. It’s pretty cool.”

The team, made up of eighth-graders Joey Thiel, Meryl Crabtree and Ben Stone and seventh-graders Ruben Castren and Kade Deleray, wanted to do a project that would help other kids. They also wanted to do something that would help other kids develop an active lifestyle, Thiel said.

“This group is very active. They just do everything,” she said. “They wanted to directly impact other kids.”

The team considered several ideas, including getting soccer cleats for youths who might not be able to afford them or buying snowshoes for Lone Pine’s winter program. They even deviated from their desire to help kids to consider helping the Flathead Food Bank.

“But there are already so many adults involved in the food bank. The need is high, but there’s awareness already,” Thiel said.

Eventually, the group interviewed Baker about his department’s needs. He was impressed with the kids’ questions and enthusiasm.

“They’re pretty sharp,” he said, laughing as he remembered how the students had grilled him about Parks and Rec programs. “They’re definitely dedicated to their cause.”

Baker gave the team several ideas, including donating to the scholarship fund. Parks and Rec collects about $3,000 in donations each year, he said, and uses that money to help kids pay to attend lessons and programs.

“Immediately the lights went on when they were visiting with me. They were real interested in that,” Baker said.

About 3,500 children go through Parks and Rec programs each year, he said. More of them tapped into the scholarship fund in the last couple years than have in years past.

“There’s a need for things like this in these tough times,” Baker said. “It’s not the kids’ fault that the economy went in the toilet.”

Once they had decided to raise money for the scholarship fund, the middle school students set a lofty goal: doubling the available scholarship money.

“Our goal is to raise $3,000 to give to them,” Castren said.

Their first fundraiser, a “hat day,” took place Friday. Students and staff at the middle school and at Edgerton, Elrod, Hedges and Russell elementary schools could pay $1 to wear a hat to school. All proceeds went to the scholarship fund.

The middle school has held successful hat days in the past for other causes, Castren said.

“Our last hat day raised $700 or so for a kid with cancer,” he said.

The team already is planning its next fundraiser, which won’t take place until spring. In May the team will host a Move Across Montana fun run, in which participants will collect pledges and then run enough miles to total the distance across Montana.

They also are working on a skit to creatively express the need they saw in the community and how they are meeting it. They will present their skit at the regional Destination ImagiNation competition in Frenchtown March 6, and maybe again at the state competition March 27 and global finals May 26 through 29.

The team’s legacy will live long after competition wraps up, Baker said.

“It will continue to help kids not only this year but for the next couple years, probably,” he said.

Reporter Kristi Albertson may be reached at 758-4438 or by e-mail at kalbertson@dailyinterlake.com.