Hunger in America – From a Simmer to a Boil

Avenge Hunger

September 7, 2018JeniferLeave a comment

avenge hunger

This insert came in my last month’s cable bill from Armstrong, our local cable provider. The insert alerts Armstrong’s customers about a food drive, benefiting local food banks and soup kitchens. They are sponsoring this food drive during the month of September as part of Feeding America’s Hunger Action Month. The nonprofit organization, Feeding America, started Hunger Action Month in 2008, in an effort to increase involvement nationwide in the fight against food insecurity in the United States. On their website, Feeding America urges Americans to stand up and Pass the Plate, by pledging to take some action to end hunger and then sharing that pledge with friends and family. The web page has a drop down menu of actions from which you can choose–donate, volunteer, contact legislators–or you can write in your own actions.

I like the idea, evoked by my cable company’s flyer, of inflicting harm on hunger on behalf of those who are hungry, and that this campaign will help individuals locally. I also support the call to action encouraged by Feeding America, and that they provide more than one suggestion for how the general population can fight hunger. One person may volunteer because he lacks the extra money to donate. Another may donate money to an organization like Feeding America or items to a food drive, because she lacks the time to volunteer. Charitable organizations who work tirelessly to assist those who are food insecure need both of these people and the resources they bring to bear in the fight against hunger. But the one action we all must must take is the third option provided in the drop down menu–contact our legislators.

The reason all those participating in this Pass the Plate campaign must engage their legislators, at all levels, is because non-profit organizations, all of them combined, can not feed all of the hungry in America. Nor can a cable company avenge hunger. Hunger and food insecurity in the United States is as formidable a foe as any of the Avengers has ever faced. As I have written before, charitable organizations alone can not solve this problem. At best they can provide stop gap measures which only serve as a band-aid on the problem. To really tackle hunger in America requires a strong social safety net and legislation which addresses the root causes of poverty in our country. So continue to volunteer and donate, as what you give enables charitable organizations to provide the stop gap measures those who are hungry need immediately, but also take the time to contact your legislators to insist that the programs which strengthened our social safety net be enacted and that steps be taken to address the root causes of poverty in America. Only then can we truly avenge hunger.

avengers

Cut Those Apron Strings

March 21, 2018JeniferLeave a comment

blue apron1 As I promised in my last post, I want to take a closer look at the proposed restructuring of the delivery of SNAP benefits from the President’s proposed budget, released last month. The budget proposes to hold back half of a SNAP recipient’s direct benefit amount, replacing it with a box of pre-selected non-perishable food items, equal in value to the amount of the held back benefits. These boxes, named America’s Harvest Box, have been compared by Mick Mulvaney, Director of the Office of Management and Budget, to Blue Apron*. For those unfamiliar with Blue Apron, the online company allows customers to choose meals from a weekly menu. The ingredients and recipes for the selected meal(s) are then shipped directly to the customers’ doorsteps. I’m not sure the exact reason for the comparison. Maybe the Administration was trying to describe the food box concept in a way they thought the general population might understand. Or maybe they were trying to sell the idea by equating it with something hip and trendy. Surely the poor will love it! Whatever their reasoning, this proposal has been resoundingly panned by economists, policy wonks, hunger advocates, and almost every organization tasked with assisting those who are food insecure.

Before I discuss the proposed changes and why they are not a good idea, I want to explain how SNAP currently works and discuss some of the positives about the current delivery system. Once a month benefits are loaded on to a SNAP participant’s Electronic Benefits Transfer (EBT) card, which resembles a credit or debit card, and works just like a debit card. SNAP participants are able to use the EBT card at participating stores to purchase qualifying food items. That’s it! That’s how easy it is. The SNAP EBT card has been in use in all 50 states since 2004 and was introduced to reduce fraud associated with the use of paper food stamp coupons. These EBT cards have been successful in helping to reduce SNAP fraud to roughly 1%, one of the lowest frauds rates of any Federal program.

The current method used to administer SNAP has numerous benefits, and not just for bluearpon2 SNAP participants. For those who participate in SNAP, the EBT card allows them the control to purchase the food that is appropriate for the make-up of their household. For instance, if the household has a baby, baby food can be purchased, or if someone in the household has dietary restrictions or allergies, certain items can be avoided in favor of more appropriate ones. Additionally, using the SNAP EBT card allows participants to shop for their food when and where it is most convenient for them. For instance they can shop at night or on weekends to accommodate a work schedule or more frequently if they are only able to carry a few items on the bus. Finally, the current manner in which SNAP functions does not just benefit SNAP participants. The USDA reports that every $5 of SNAP benefit spent generates $9 in economic activity for the local economy.

From all angles the current SNAP program’s benefit delivery system looks like it functions quite well. It is easy to administer, experiences very little fraud, and is flexible in meeting the needs of those it seeks to help. So what would the restructuring do to improve this program? Absolutely nothing. As previously stated, the proposed restructure would withhold half of the benefit dollar amount for a SNAP recipient and replaced it with the America’s Harvest Box. The remaining benefits would be loaded onto an EBT card for SNAP participants to use as they currently do. The box of food would contain non-perishable foods, such as canned fruits and vegetables, peanut butter and jelly, pasta and cereals, and shelf stable milk. Each SNAP household would get a food box valued at the amount of their withheld benefits. The food items would be chosen by the government and will vary from month to month depending on what is available.

blueapron3 If you are like me, at this point you are scratching your head and asking why the government would blow up an efficiently functioning program and replace it with one that will be less beneficial to those who use it, possibly more expensive to administer, and a logistical nightmare for all. According to the USDA the intent of this change is to “improve the nutritional value of the benefits provided and reduce the potential EBT fraud.” In response to the second half of that statement, what fraud and how is this going to help? Direct benefits on an EBT card, which are currently virtually fraud proof (hence a 1% rate of fraud), are being converted into a box of food, which could easily be sold or traded, creating conditions where fraud can more readily happen.

As for the first half of the statement, the America’s Harvest Boxes do very little to ensure better access to nutritional food for those receiving SNAP benefits. The boxes provide no fresh produce, while taking away half of the SNAP recipient’s direct benefits, which could have been used to purchase fresh fruits and vegetables. In addition to limiting a SNAP household’s access to fresh produce, the America’s Harvest Box has potential to hamper SNAP recipients’ ability to purchase food items appropriate to the household and may even give recipients food which can not be used by members of the household. In all likelihood, the contents of the boxes would be uniform for all households and households would not have any idea what exactly will be inside until the box is opened. Consequently, a family with a baby would get the same food as the family with older children or no children. The diabetic or person with heart disease would get the same food as the SNAP recipient with no health issues. And what about those with food allergies, like peanut butter? Some households will get food they can’t use, while others won’t get items they need. The result in either case will be SNAP recipients who will have a reduced ability to purchase fresh produce and food appropriate to their household.

In addition to having the purchasing power of their direct SNAP benefits diminished, these SNAP participants face the likely burden of having to pick up their food boxes. With Blue Apron, the box of ingredients is delivered to the purchasers’ doorsteps. I doubt America’s Harvest Boxes will be delivered to SNAP recipients’ doorsteps as the cost would be too prohibitive. Consequently, food box recipients will need to travel to a distribution location at specific times to receive their food. One might think picking up this box of food is no big deal, but what if the pick up time is during their work hours? Or they don’t have reliable transportation? Or they have a car, but lack enough money to buy gas for this extra trip? Or they are unable to carry a large box of food on public transportation? The currently mode of putting direct benefits on an EBT card presents blueapron4 none of these added burdens for SNAP participants.

SNAP recipients, however, are not the only ones to experience the negatives of this restructuring of SNAP. States, tasked with the job of assembling and distributing these food boxes, will also face hardships. The proposed budget says that states will have “substantial flexibility in designing the food box delivery system through existing infrastructure, partnerships, or commercial/retail delivery services.” But what does that mean? The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities contends that neither the USDA nor the states currently have the operational capacity and infrastructure necessary to support the distribution of commodities to individual households. If that is the case, new bureaucracy will need to be created with the possibility that the funds to create this delivery system will to come out of the already shrinking SNAP budget, further reducing the funding available to assist the food insecure. Additionally, local economies will suffer when SNAP recipients’ ability to purchase their food locally drops by half. Large retailers, like Walmart and Target, are already speaking out in opposition to this change.

Many of the critics of the America’s Harvest Box proposal agree that this restructuring of SNAP probably will not pass. Even though this legislation may be going nowhere, I still feel that discussing it is important. The details of the restructuring, at best, reveal a disconnect between what the Administration thinks will help SNAP participants and what they really need in terms of assistance. More disturbing, however, some critics believe this proposal is just a smokescreen to cover for cuts and mandatory work requirements for SNAP participation. There has been a movement by some legislators for the past several years to severely cut the budget for SNAP, and unable to pass legislation to make that cut all at once, they have been chipping away at the SNAP budget year after year. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program is one of the few remaining programs of our social safety net. Every year SNAP prevents millions of Americans from slipping through the net into a level poverty from which they can not recover. If SNAP is allowed to be restructured or in any other way to have its budget cut, I think the depths of poverty will extend down to levels we have not seen in this country for many decades. Those of us concerned with the plight of people in poverty must remain vigilant.

*Next time, before the anyone from the Administration makes a comparison, perhaps he should do some research. Blue Apron has never turned a profit and has actually been losing customers. It’s stock has lost two-thirds of the value of it’s initial public offering of $10, causing speculation about whether the company will even exist in 5 years.

A Budget Built on Myths

March 5, 2018JeniferLeave a comment

Over the past two weeks I have read analyses and responses to the President’s 2019 proposed budget from a variety of sources, including organizations which report the news, conduct policy review, advocate for the poor, and help provide food for those who are food insecure. All of these organizations and news outlets have come to the same conclusion–this budget will be disastrous to poor Americans. Since my blog focuses on food insecurity, I am going to limit my discussion of the proposed budget to changes which will affect aid to those who are food insecure; however, the budget’s proposed cuts to the federal housing assistance program, Medicaid, and other programs comprising our social safety net will undoubtedly further negatively impact these same households. I will mostly focus on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), which is slated to have its budget cut by $213 billion over the next ten years, or 30 percent. This budget cut to SNAP would be achieved by drastically restructuring benefit delivery, a change affecting a majority of participating SNAP households. Additional proposed changes in benefits and eligibility requirements would make at least 4 million people elderly hands ineligible for any SNAP benefits. These proposed cuts will affect SNAP participants across all groups, including the elderly, those with disabilities, low income working families, children and veterans.

If this budget is approved, the largest cut to SNAP would occur through a dramatic restructuring in the delivery of benefits. In this restructuring $260 billion (over 10 years) will be shifted from benefits paid directly to households for the purchase of food, back to the government. Here is how the restructuring will work. Under the proposal, households which receive $90 or more in SNAP benefits each month (80% of all SNAP recipients) would see half of their benefit amount shift from direct EBT funds, which are then used by the recipient to purchase food, to a box of pre-selected, non-perishable food worth the same dollar amount including, shelf stable milk, cereals, pasta, peanut butter, beans, and canned fruits and vegetables.* The cost for the purchase food, assembly, and distribution of these boxes, called America’s Harvest Box, is budgeted to cost $130 billion, or half of the money being shifted from direct benefits. The remaining $130 billion of the held back funds would be eliminated from the program, comprising the majority of the USDA’s estimated ten year SNAP savings. This change would affect almost 90% of SNAP participants, or approximately 34 million people in 16 million households in 2019.

The cuts to SNAP do not end with this restructuring though. The President’s 2019 budget proposes an additional $85 billion in cuts to SNAP over a ten year period. For example, the budget proposes raising the upper age limit for unemployed able-bodied adults without dependents (ABAWDs), who are limited to only 3 months of SNAP benefits, from the current age of 49 to age 62. Another proposed change would be to cap SNAP benefits disabled at the level for a household of six, penalizing any households of more than six individuals. This will greatly impact multi-generational households or households where two families have come together to pool their resources by sharing costs. An additional proposed cut would be the elimination of the minimum benefit, ending benefits for roughly 2 million individuals, mostly low-income seniors and people with disabilities. These are just a few of the other areas the budget proposes to cut SNAP benefits. SNAP, however, is not the only program assisting those who are food insecure targeted for cuts.

Like SNAP these other programs help all groups who are facing poverty and food insecurity. For instance, the budget proposes the all but elimination of the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), which will impact seniors. The CSFP distributes senior boxes, which provides meal boxes to low income seniors. Additionally there are proposed cuts to the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) and school and summer lunch programs. These cuts will greatly impact children and weaken programs which have been proven to not only lessen hunger, but infant eating to improve the health and educational achievement of children. The last cuts I want to mention are cuts to programs that assist with purchasing fresh produce at farmer’s markets, and nutritional education programs. These cuts strike me as incredibly hypocritical as one of the main reasons for restructuring SNAP benefits to include the America’s Harvest Box was to ensure SNAP participants were purchasing healthy food with their benefits. The America’s Harvest Box, however, contains no fresh produce and these cuts will reduce the amount of fresh fruits and vegetables individuals receiving assistance can purchase.

As I state above, the proposed cuts to these social safety net programs designed to assist the food insecure do not discriminate and will hurt all segments of the population receiving assistance. This proposed budget reflects a clear misunderstanding about who the average SNAP participant actually is.* I have come to the conclusion over the past few years of studying poverty issues and food insecurity, that many in this country, including a large number of politicians, believe that the average SNAP participant is someone who is lazy and doesn’t want to work. They believe that person uses his or her benefits to buy junk food and sodas or steaks and other luxuries. Furthermore, when they not making inappropriate food purchases, they are engaging in some sort of fraudulent activity with their SNAP benefits. And all the while they are abusing the system, they are laughing at hard working Americans for providing their tax dollars to fund this program. Ladies and gentlemen, this version of the average SNAP participant is a MYTH and before anyone starts to protest about some friend their brother knows, or a co-worker’s cousin or even their own deadbeat cousin, let me just say that I know there are those out there who abuse the system. I have witnessed it myself. But the number of farm worker participants I have witnessed who are truly struggling, working hard, and trying to do the right thing to get themselves and their families out of the situation they are in, vastly outweighs the handful of SNAP abusers I have encountered.

I grew up hearing that those in the United States who wanted to could pull themselves up by their own bootstraps and make a good life for themselves. I was taught that in America if a person worked hard and played by the rules, he could rise up and attain the American Dream. I have learned that this, too, is a MYTH. Oh sure, the possibility does exist for an individual to start with very little, and with hard work and smart decisions, attain wealth. I would just argue that there is more to that person’s story than just hard work and sacrifice, because I encounter individuals all the time who are working hard and sacrificing, but still live in poverty. The truth is that it is against incredible odds that anyone is able to move out of poverty in the United States. The social safety net in the Untied States contains gaping holes in its current state. Maintaining the status quo will at best ensure that poverty numbers in the United States will remain at their current level. If this budget were to pass, however, all bets are off.

* I will address this topic further in an upcoming blog post.

A Moral Disgrace

February 15, 2018JeniferLeave a comment

eraser Monday I sat down to write, but was unable to get started. I had a topic–charitable organizations alone can not adequately address poverty and food insecurity. I had done reading on the topic and had even written out some notes and a basic outline. Still nothing came. I am very familiar with the topic, having touched upon it several times already in my writing, and have definite ideas about the role charity should play in addressing poverty. I thought maybe the strong opinions I had regarding the topic might be creating a barrier to writing. Sometimes the posts I am the most emotionally attached to are the more difficult ones to write. Consequently, I decided to put my chosen topic away and look for another one to write about, maybe something positive and uplifting as I was feeling a bit overwhelmed at the enormity of the problem of food insecurity. I began searching on the Internet, reading articles and postings on various websites, but nothing jumped out at me, certainly not anything positive. And then, just before I my blogging day ended and I had to shift back into Mom mode, something caught my eye. The President had released his proposed budget.

As I transitioned from my home office to the kitchen, I switched on the radio to listen to the evening news cycle. The release of the proposed budget dominated the evening news, with NPR even incorporating the budget release into their banter during their winter fund drive break as a result of the budget’s proposal to zero out funding for the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. Dinnertime neared and the radio got turned off. It wasn’t until later that night that I was able to check back in to various news sources to get an update on what the budget contained. I expected there to be information and even some criticism from various news outlets. While I was not expecting good news to come out of this budget, I was not quite prepared for what greeted me.

There were articles and analyses about the content of the proposed budget, but there were also statements and press releases, from various organizations advocating for and assist with those experiencing poverty and food insecurity, who I follow on Facebook. And these organizations, who make it their purpose to assist those in poverty, who understand intimately what the result of these proposed budget cuts will be, were outraged. Among those responses, the harsh statement from Abby J. Leibman, President and CEO of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger, calling the budget proposal a “moral disgrace,” really grabbed my attention. At that moment I realized that the statements from the these organizations, condemning this budget, were making the same point I had been planning to make in my aborted post on Monday. Philanthropic organizations alone can not make a dent in the problem of poverty or food insecurity. Nor should they be expected to take point on a problem as complex as poverty. These organizations, who are in the trenches trying to help people who are hungry, know that if you further slash these social safety net programs or re-work successful programs, like SNAP, real people will suffer and the problem will only get worse.

The anti-hunger field has been prepared for disappointment, but this proposal is beyond the pale.

Abby J. Leibman President & CEO of MAZON: A Jewish Response to Hunger

Over the past couple of days I have learned more about the President’s proposed budget, especially with regard to social safety net programs like SNAP. I have saved numerous articles and website postings critiquing this budget and the changes it proposes to these compass rocks programs. The despair I felt paralyzed by on Monday has been replaced by anger and indignation. I am going to spend some time reading all the material I have saved. Once I have done that I will share with you why this budget is the train wreck so many people who study poverty and/or work with the poor know it to be. For now I will leave you with the main question on my mind. Have we Americans lost our moral compass when it comes to understanding the reasons for poverty and the steps needed to be taken to successfully address poverty? Looking at this budget, it sure feels like it.

Be the Change

January 25, 2018JeniferLeave a comment

be the change I wanted to let my Facebook followers know that I have launched a From a Simmer to a Boil Facebook page. It has actually been in existence for quite some time, but I have just recently updated it. My intention with this page is to share, in addition to my blog posts, interesting, informative, thought provoking items about food insecurity and poverty, like the video I just posted about better understanding poverty in the United States. I encourage you to check it out and “like” and “follow” the page. You can find it by searching From a Simmer to a Boil on Facebook or by clicking here. I also have a Twitter account @fromasimmertoaboil, which I hope to post to more frequently as well. Thank you for your interest in what I write and for caring about people who are experiencing poverty and food insecurity!

Lunch Shaming

June 9, 2017JeniferLeave a comment

girl blue glasses I hadn’t heard of lunch shaming, most people probably hadn’t, until a few months ago. Now the topic seems to be in the news everywhere, thanks in part to the Hunger-Free Students’ Bill of Rights legislation enacted by the New Mexico State Legislature outlawing lunch shaming. So what is lunch shaming? School lunch shaming is holding children publicly accountable for any unpaid lunch bills they have accumulated, or in other words, holding children responsible for a debt their parents can not pay. Some might say school districts have no other choice. After all, they can not be expected to annually absorb this debt, which for some larger urban districts can reach into the millions of dollars. What makes this situation news worthy isn’t that school districts are trying to recoup this debt. They should be. No, what makes this situation news worth are the tactics many districts use to go about about collecting the debt and perhaps less emphasized, but possibly more important, that this debt exists in 76% of school districts across the United States.

The reason the topic of school lunch debt exploded onto the news scene is due to reports about how some school districts have chosen to handle students who can not pay for lunch. Angry teachers, cafeteria staff and students report incidents involving cafeteria staff taking a regular lunch away from a child and throwing it away in front of the hungry child and other students before giving the child a less desirable lunch or in a few cases no lunch at all. Other disturbing examples include stamping or writing on the child’s arm that s/he has unpaid lunch debt. In the not too distant past, children with lunch debt were made to do chores in the cafeteria in exchange for food, as was the case with Michael Padilla, the State Senator in New Mexico who introduced that state’s anti-lunch shaming legislation. Of course the more extreme cases of lunch shaming are the ones making the news, but the most common practice is to deny the child with lunch debt the regular hot or cold meal, serving him instead a less desirable meal, usually a cheese sandwich. In many school districts, no uniform policy addressing school lunch debt exists, leaving each individual school to address the issue of how to deal with students unable to pay for their lunch. In an effort to remedy the lack of uniform school district policies dealing with children who can not pay for their lunch, the US Department of Agriculture has set a July 1, 2017, deadline for states to establish these policies.

In addition to attempts to prevent school lunch debt from rising during the school year, school boy school districts, as well as the general public, are making attempts to alleviate existing debt. In districts where the debt is small enough, it may just be absorbed or funds may be shifted from the General Fund to offset the debt. For many larger districts, however, this is not an option. Most school district Food Service Managers actively work with families owing school lunch debt to find solutions for paying off the debt. Additionally, these managers strive to enroll every student who is eligible in the free and reduced school lunch program. In addition to school districts trying to lessen their meal debt, the general public has gotten involved, especially once reports of lunch shaming started being reported in the news. According to GoFundMe, at least 30 active campaigns exist to help pay down lunch debt in a particular school district. Additionally, two high school juniors in West Palm Beach, FL have started School Lunch Fairy, an organization, to help zero out lunch debt in school districts nationwide. Finally, good Samaritans in scores of school districts have made arrangements with a school district to pay off all or part of that district’s outstanding lunch debt. (See note at the bottom.)

All of these efforts are laudable, but they are band-aid responses to the problem and more thought needs to go into planning long term solutions. One of the first places to start would be with what is already in place. The programs which provide free and reduced breakfast and lunch to children are very successful for the students enrolled in these programs. School districts should be making every effort to enroll as many of their qualifying students in these programs as they possibly can. Additionally, school districts with schools whose student population qualifies to be included in the Community Eligibility Provision (CEP), which allows qualifying schools to provide free breakfast and lunch to all enrolled students without collecting household applications, should take steps to participate in this program if not already doing so. Both of these programs help provide millions of children with a nutritious breakfast and lunch, but still they fall short of solving the lunch debt problem. Many eligible families, in spite of a school district’s best efforts, still fail to fill out an application for free lunch and most schools in the United States do not qualify for CEP. Furthermore, of those school who qualify for CEP, roughly half of them fail to participate in the provision. The failure of the current programs to fully address the nationwide problem has lead some educators to suggest school bus that maybe schools should just be providing all students with lunch, much in the same way students are provided with textbooks and transportation to and from school.

Equating providing lunch to all students to providing other necessary items for student success, like textbooks or transportation to school, is an interesting concept and one that I am sure will require much more debate, as will other ideas proposed to deal with school lunch debt. In the meantime steps can and should be taken to alleviate the shame and embarrassment children experience when they have lunch debt. One of the easiest first steps to take is to do away with the dreaded cheese sandwich. Why can’t children with school lunch debt just receive the cold meal that is on the menu for the day? By giving them this meal, these children do not stand out among their peers by carrying the stigma of being unable to afford lunch. Another practice that should banned immediately is the practice of taking food from a child and throwing it away, particularly in front of the child. I find this practice incredibly cruel, not to mention offensively wasteful of food and taxpayers’ dollars.

Removing the shame associated with having school lunch debt, some fear, will only cause more families to abuse the system, increasing school lunch debt for school districts. A certain number of people will always cheat whatever system exists, but little evidence exists to support that the majority of households carrying lunch debt could actually pay for their meals, but instead are attempting to freeload off the system. What most districts find is that this debt is carried by households who qualify for free/reduced lunch, but are not signed up to participate or by households who just miss the cutoff to qualify. One anecdotal way school districts know these families are truly struggling rather than freeloading is that they often receive an influx of payments on school lunch debts every other Friday, which is a common payday.

Ask almost any teacher, school administrator, or cafeteria worker in a public school, giggle especially one located in a community with significant poverty, and she will tell you that children come to school hungry every day of the school year. Research exists showing the negative impact hunger and lack of good nutrition can have on children and learning. Many of the proposed solutions to the problem of school lunch debt, and the larger underlying problem of childhood hunger will cost money. As a society we have to decide whether we want to pay the cost to solve a problem in its infancy or wait to pay for the all the repercussions that the problem will cause if allowed to exists unchecked. Feeding hungry children now is a less costly solution than having to address the cognitive, emotional, and health problems that hunger and the lack of good nutrition cause in children. Besides, ensuring children in one of the wealthiest nations in the world do not go hungry is the only morally appropriate choice to make.

Note:

In my school district a good Samaritan paid off the entire school lunch debt this year. I hope she knows what a difference she has made for these families.

On a personal note:

Over the school year I repeatedly fussed at my younger son for how quickly he went through the money we deposited into his school lunch account. This past week he received his school yearbook, and as I thumbed through the pages looking at how grown up these kids suddenly look, I was stopped by one autograph. It said, “Thanks for buying me lunch when I didn’t have money.” I don’t know how many times my son bought lunch for this friend or whether there were others he helped. I do know I was incredibly proud.

Give It to Someone Who Needs It

January 26, 2017JeniferLeave a comment

“I don’t need this. Give it to someone who does.”

I heard this, or something very close to it, said three times this week while I was volunteering at the food pantry. The three people who said this were not folks who had come in to donate food. They were three clients who were receiving food. Each one of these clients declined to take at least one item we were offering in their monthly allotment of food, not because s/he didn’t like it, but because it was not needed this month. One lady, when she realized she had a couple of items she did not need, even brought those items back in to us after taking her food to her car . (She also brought in a bag of children’s books to share with others because her children were done with them.) The items they declined were dry good items–a jar of jelly, cans of vegetables, syrup–that pancakes-and-syrup would have lasted on a shelf for several months to a year or two, and yet these people, who have so little, refused to take what they did not immediately need so that someone else who needed it more could have it.

I’m not writing about these three clients because their actions are unusual. On the contrary, we hear this sentiment all the time. I am often touched by the generosity of people who have little to share making sure others, who have less, are able to have something as well. And their generosity does not end with just food. I recently learned of two client households who opened their homes to one or more persons who were going to find themselves homeless otherwise. Can you imagine if your resources were already stretched to the breaking point, telling more people to “Come on in. We’ll figure it out somehow.”? I am so touched by their acts of selflessness and glad that we are here to help them as they help others.

Coming to a food pantry is often a last resort for people. They need help, but are usually embarrassed by their need. Once they receive that assistance, they are so appreciative. The situation is no different with our clients. In addition to being thoughtful, the majority of our clients are extremely grateful for our assistance, often to the point of tears. They appreciate the dry good staples we regularly provide, but are especially enthusiastic thank-you-peppers about the fresh produce and the little extras we sometimes have, like dog food, special dietary items like low sodium soups and the baking mixes in December. It has been so rewarding to hear how much of a lift those mixes were. One client, in relating how grateful she was to receive the baking mix told us she used the item she baked as a gift from someone. Once again, these stories and thank yous are not unusual, but the norm.

So often the portrayal of people who are at or below the poverty line, and are therefore food insecure, is less than favorable. I have heard people refer to those needing assistance as lazy and that they are cheating the system. One politician called them takers. To be fair, he has apologized for using that term and has since stopped using it, but the sentiment he expressed is alive and well in our country. The reality of who a typical food pantry client is, however, resembles someone far different. The typical food pantry client is the young man who left college in his third year to return home to care for his ailing mother because he was all she had. It is the grandmother who is now caring for her grandchildren and maybe even an adult child, because drug addiction has devastated their family. It is the person struggling to beat cancer or the senior citizen who can’t quite get by on just Social Security. It is even the family trying to make ends meet on one, two or even three minimum wage jobs. Time and again I am humbled by their words of gratitude and simple acts of generosity for others. They understand more than most what it is like to need help and more importantly, how important it is that others are there to provide that help.

Christmas in July

August 11, 2016August 11, 2016JeniferLeave a comment

harley For over 25 years on the Fourth of July weekend the local chapter of a motorcycle club pulls up outside the food pantry where I volunteer to deliver the results of their annual food drive. This year was no exception. On July 2nd three pickup trucks towing utility trailers loaded with food, diapers, personal hygiene products, cleaning products and paper products arrived, bringing the food pantry Christmas in July! During the month of June, members from Chester County A.B.A.T.E. set up outside local grocery stores on the weekends to collect donations for this drive. Additionally, club members take any financial donations they receive and purchase items the pantry needs, but are not usually donated in a food drive, like the personal hygiene products, diapers and paper products.

This considerably large donation comes at a great time of year. Food banks and pantries, ours included, often get most of their large donations in the late fall, right before the holidays, so by the summer donated supplies are running low. Additionally, summer is often a time when food pantry usage goes up, as children, who may normally receive two meals a day at school during the school year, are home for the summer. This sizeable donation helps in another way, by allowing us to bring new items into the pantry and fill in the gaps in our staple items, like pasta, beans, rice and vegetables. I can see the difference this donation has made already. Our shelves are completely stocked, including personal care items, diapers, and items for the homeless.

Operating a food bank, cupboard or pantry would be impossible without the generosity of those who donate. We are fortunate to get individual and organization donations regularly throughout the year. As a matter of fact, as I was leaving the pantry on Tuesday I held the door open for a lady bringing in a box of donated food. Additionally, several churches drop off regular donations from parishioners. Sizeable donations like this one, however, coming at a time of year when most people are focused on things other than food drives, help us better serve those in need in our community. So to the members of this motorcycle club I say a heartfelt thank you and safe ride!

Make Me Look Normal

July 29, 2016JeniferLeave a comment

This week when I was volunteering at the food pantry one of our homeless clients stopped in to let us know that he had gotten a job. He was happy and proud of himself and wanted to share his good news, but he also had a request. He wanted to know if we had any wipes so he could keep himself cleaned up and he wanted some food, especially food he could take to work to make him “look normal” to his coworkers. Luckily we were able to provide both due to recent donations. We gave him some wipes and a few cans of Chef Boyardee and stew and a can of Spam. We even gave him a cantaloupe to celebrate of his good news! Overall this interaction was positive, but his request to “look normal” tug at my heartstrings. All he wanted was what most of us take for granted; he wanted to fit in, to be an accepted, productive member of society.

In our society we have a tendency to ignore or even shame people in poverty. We look past homeless-man-free-picture-for-blogs-1[1] the homeless person sitting on the sidewalk or avoid making eye contact with the mother with the child who is asking for something to eat because he is hungry. Or worse, we look at them with disgust or harsh judgement. There are many reasons why we behave in this manner. Maybe we are frustrated because we are working hard and not getting ahead and we worry that one day that could all too easily be us. Or maybe we look away because we desperately want to be of assistance, but feel powerless to truly help these folks out of their situation. Some may tell themselves this homeless person or single mother is responsible for his or her situation due to the poor decisions he or she has made in life, and therefore deserves no further consideration. Whatever our rationale, the result of our actions is to push people living in poverty to the edges of society, to segregate them.

I admit that at times have been guilty of such actions myself. I admit to looking past a homeless person or pretending not to hear the heartache in a mother’s voice as she responds to her child’s pleas of hunger. I regretfully chose to look away because, at best, I could only help them in the moment, but do nothing to change their situation. Initially, when I started volunteering in the food pantry I was worried about how to interact with the clients. I didn’t want them to feel I was patronizing or pitying them. In the end I settled my nerves by telling myself to just smile and greet them, to acknowledge them like I would any other person I would meet in my day. I didn’t quite understand the power of that act until our client’s request to want to “look normal.” He didn’t want anything special. He just wanted to be regarded and treated like everyone else. He is not alone, as I imagine most people living in poverty, in addition to wanting a path out of poverty, want to be treated with humanity and acceptance.

This longing to appear “normal”, I’m sure, is felt strongly by children. They may not understand why some children can have so much, but they do not. Whenever we can we try to make sure a client with children gets the boxed mac and cheese with the Star War noodles or the Frosted Flakes. We sometimes get donated boxes of Little Debbie birthday-cake snack cakes or sweets that are out of season, like the packaged peppermint bark we got right after Christmas. It is always fun slipping these items into a family’s monthly groceries, knowing the joy it will bring to a little one whose life holds few treats. This past week we were able to ensure a young girl got a birthday party thanks to someone who donated a birthday party in a bag, which included cake mix, birthday candles, plates and napkins. (What a great idea this is!) This young lady’s birthday party will be on Saturday and I will happily think of her getting to celebrate her birthday like a “normal” kid.

When I think what a food pantry provides I have been defining my answer in the broadest terms. A food pantry provides food and other supplies to someone who is in need. After this exchange with our homeless client, I realize what we provide is more than just food. This gentleman came back to us to share his success, not only because he needed items, but because he knew he would be acknowledged and treated “normally”, that we would be happy for him and celebrate, as well as help him with his request. One doesn’t have to volunteer in a food pantry, however, to have this interaction with people in poverty. The next time you see someone struggling with poverty, certainly assist them if you can, but equally important, remember they want to be seen and treated as “normal”. A smile and a friendly greeting can go a long way in making someone feel that they are accepted and belong.

Good News for a Change!

June 16, 2016Jenifer1 Comment

There have been times lately when the daily news feed has just been depressing to the point that I will go several days with minimal monitoring of the news. To continue to follow the news cycle only serves to deepen the malaise that I feel and at times has almost caused me to throw up my hands and say what’s the use. These past few days have been no exception. So when I received two particular emails yesterday containing good news my lunchbox spirits were immediately lifted.

The first email came from the Director of Food Services in my local school district, notifying me that the school district’s application to provide free summer lunches to students in our school district had finally been approved. The school district had applied to serve reimbursable meals under the federally funded Summer Food Service Program. Any child under the age of 18 will be able to come to the designated location and receive a meal at no charge. Adults are also able to eat a meal as well for a nominal fee. The school district will be serving lunches at a convenient, walkable location, 4 days a week from June 20-August 18.

This is the same program that I had been researching last year, with the hope of convincing the school board to authorize the district to apply to be a sponsor of this program for this summer. When I contacted the Food Services Director for the district to obtain some information for my group’s presentation, she told me the district was already considering this program. At the time she was just beginning her research, so I was able to provide her with the contact information of the person with whom I had been speaking at the PA Department of Education. I was very relieved to learn that the school district was already considering this program. I had been thinking that our group was going to have to do quite a bit of convincing to get this program implemented. I need to get my background check completed, but once I have accomplished that I plan to volunteer with this program once a week as well.

The second email I received that buoyed my spirits was the monthly newsletter from the Food Bank of Delaware. The Food Bank of DE has received a 3 year grant from Giant Food’s Our Family Foundation. This grant allows the Food Bank of DE to partner with Delaware Pediatrics in a pilot program entitled “Produce Prescriptions”. The pilot will allow participating Delaware Pediatrics offices to identify up to 120 families they feel are at risk for food insecurity and diet related health conditions, such as cardiovascular disease, obesity and diabetes. Those families will then be given a “produce prescription” which allows them to receive a monthly allotment of 15-20 pounds of fruits and vegetables from the Food Bank. These fruits and vegetables will be able to be picked up by the families at the pediatric clinic they attend. What a great idea! I have read about doctors and hospitals writing prescriptions for fruits and vegetables, but this is the first program I have heard about that provides the produce to those who are otherwise unable to purchase the produce themselves.

These emails came at just the right time for me. Periodically I get very discouraged and pessimistic about what can be accomplished, and in particular, what I can ever hope to accomplish. While I do not take any credit for the summer lunch program in my local girls eating watermelon town, I am happy to know that I helped connect the Food Service Director with the right person at the right State agency to move the process along. I’d also like to think that keeping in contact with her over the past few months and letting her know that people in the community supported this action strengthened the district’s resolve to see this process to fruition. Either way, it matters not. The most important thing is that kids, who would otherwise be hungry, are now able to get a nutritious lunch 4 days a week over the summer.