Need a little help with food or want to help ensure your friends and neighbors have access to non-perishables? Stop by a Little Free Pantry in the Evansville area.
Why SNAP Disruption Puts Local Families at Risk
The current federal shutdown is expected to interrupt SNAP benefits for millions of Americans on November 1st, just weeks before Thanksgiving. Regardless of your political affiliations, the reality is that this is going to have a very real impact on our friends and neighbors here in Indiana, but especially for the children in our community whose caregivers count on those dollars to keep them fed.
The stall in support comes just months after $500 million in food deliveries allocated by the USDA for food banks across the nation were cut by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, according to a report from ProPublica. The outlet cited federal data, saying that food insecurity is “higher than at any time since the aftermath of the Great Recession.”
Download the WGBF-FM Mobile App Now
That need is expected to grow after a law was signed over the summer creating the largest cut to SNAP funding in the history of the subsidy program, which first began as a pilot program in 1939, according to the USDA, and now, because of the shutdown, the families that rely on that subsidization to survive are being left to fend for themselves.
The Stark Reality for Many Evansville Families, Children, and Even Teachers
One Evansville teacher shared with us the stark reality that many of her students and their families face. There just isn’t enough food, and the gap between the end of the month and the next round of benefits the following month often means hungry bellies for the kids.
The end of the month is always hard for families, because their refrigerators become empty. I always privatly check with my students on Fridays and send items home with those who are running low. I know many children and adults have been waiting on the first of the month, in order to restock their cabinets. My heart has been heavy all weekend, because I know they will now remain empty.
Little Free Pantries Offer Fast No-Barrier Food Access
The truth is that some of us are going to need help. Likewise, some of us are going to be looking for ways to help because we recognize that no one, especially children, should go hungry.
What to Donate and How to Stock Them
Regardless of whether you need help or you want to help, one of the fastest, lowest-barrier, no-questions-asked resources we have is the Little Free Pantries located around Evansville. They operate on a simple principle: Take what you need. Leave what you can. No paperwork. No forms. No shame…