While the federal government struggled to reach an agreement for weeks on end until the shutdown’s ultimate end on Nov. 12, a Gwinnett County teenager stepped up to help families in need.
November started with a bleak realization for over 1.4-million Georgians: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) would only be partially funded for the month.
Jaeleon Hawkins-Jones is a 16-year-old high school junior in Gwinnett County and a member of Gwinnett Young Democrats, and he says his family being in a similar situation is what drove him.
“It’s really simple. My family relied on SNAP benefits, and when I heard the news that it was going to be pausing, it devastated me,” Hawkins-Jones said. “It broke my heart because the main people who are supposed to be protecting our families and making sure that we’re able to survive … couldn’t come to an agreement to figure out how they’re going to keep their citizens fed.”…