The news has been flooded lately with stories on the recent cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), better known as Food Stamps.  Recently, a temporary boost to the SNAP program (enacted by the 2009 Recovery Act) ended, decreasing monthly assistance benefits to some 47 million Americans.  87% of these families consist of children, seniors, or people with disabilities.  Following the recent cuts, a family of four eligible for the SNAP program now receives @ $632/month.  That’s $5.20 per person/per day, or @ $1.73 per meal (1).

That’s right.

$1.73.

Per meal – every day.

If you’re saying to yourself, “wow – that’s not much,” you’d be right.  Congress is contemplating even further cuts to the program in the future.

Now, no matter what you think of SNAP (i.e. its abuses, its overuse, etc.), the program provides life-saving assistance to many families who don’t have the resources to provide food for themselves or their families.  Just how many?  Take a look at the percentage of people (below) in our area who receive SNAP benefits (2):

• Maryland – 13.3%
• Pennsylvania – 14.1%
• Virginia – 11.5%
• West Virginia – 18.8%

I find these figures astounding.  That’s a tremendous amount of people relying on assistance just to survive.  Odds are, you probably interact with someone who needs this kind of assistance and you don’t even know it.

So where do people turn when their SNAP benefits run out (or they don’t even have that to rely on?)

The local food bank.

(Image credit – homlessshelterdirectory.org)

Local food banks and pantries used to provide merely “emergency” assistance for people to get through a rough patch or dire need, but more and more of these organizations are becoming a regular and consistent source of food for needy families.  Food bank use nationally has increased an incredible 48% between 2006 and 2010 (3), and the numbers continue to grow, taxing the resources of every organization trying to assist.  Shelves that are full one week are literally bare the next, and people have to be turned away because there is nothing left to give them.

As a society, we think about helping our fellow man and giving to others only during the holiday season, but food banks and food pantries need our help in every season.  Think about that the next time you’re at the grocery store.  Take a minute and toss an extra can of soup, bag of flour, or other non-perishable food item into your cart.  Locate your local food bank or food pantry and drop off a bag of supplies.  Ask them what they need.  Write them a check.  Volunteer to help out.  Believe me, it will make a difference – both now and in the months to come.

“In a world full of people who couldn’t care less, be someone who couldn’t care more.”

– Anonymous

 

Sources

• Congressional Budget Office
• US Census Bureau and the USDA
• USA Today