JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — Local food banks and food pantries are running extremely low on supplies due to the federal government shutdown. Now, an expected cut to SNAP benefits in just days has many people looking for help to put food on the table.
Lutheran Social Services said their shelves have been looking empty for a few weeks now, but the need has been growing.
“The food is going out as fast, sometimes faster, than it’s coming in,” said Ronnie Wilson, food pantry manager at Lutheran Social Services.
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Running dangerously low on food, that’s how Lutheran Social Services of Northeast Florida describes its pantry.
It’s due to a decrease in donations and a drop in funding from the government earlier this year. It’s left the pantry with a low level of food that managers have never seen before
“The biggest concern is how long are we going to be able to continue to operate,” said Ronnie Wilson, food pantry manager at Lutheran Social Services.
They say they have roughly two weeks’ worth of food to continue distribution. They say, this is approaching the record numbers of families they helped during the pandemic – some 2,000 a month. But with the lack of supplies, they can only hand out about half the amount of food they typically provide individual families – from 40 pounds a month down to about 20.
“We see our numbers increasing from approximately 1,500 or so a month; we have almost reached 1,800 just this month alone, which is almost 300 families more than last month,” said Wilson.
Within two hours of opening, they have already had to dwindle the amount of food from four bags to two; they are handing out just because of the increase in need.
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They say if they run out of supplies altogether, they will have to shut their doors. It’s something they have never done.
Lutheran Social Services now asks for food donations like peanut butter, rice, and beans, and will match any monetary gift up to ten thousand dollars.
- Donations can be dropped off at Lutheran Social Services, 4615 Philips Highway, Jacksonville, FL 32207, Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m., or Friday, 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. Collection barrels and pick-up are available for large food donations.
- Online donations can be made here.
Through November 15, monetary donations will be matched by LSS supporters Hugh Smyrl and Richard Hood, who have pledged to match any gift to LSS, dollar-for-dollar (up to $10,000) with their own gift for Thanksgiving meals.
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