Urban Ministries of Wake County food pantry manager Jerry Leslie, Oct. 29, 2025. (photo: Ahmed Jallow /NC Newsline)
Inside the Urban Ministries of Wake County’s food pantry on Thursday morning, volunteers slid boxes of pasta and cans of vegetables into brown paper bags, the day’s rations for families waiting outside in a line of cars that wrapped around the building.
Outside, pantry manager Jerry Leslie moved from car to car with a clipboard, checking names and employment status as volunteers hustled to keep pace. The line has grown in recent weeks, he said, a sign of rising need as the federal shutdown unsettles families across North Carolina…