When a mother from Leavenworth pulled into the parking lot of the Community Cupboard on Saturday, Hillary Clark said she could see the strain etched on her face. According to Clark the woman works full-time, but that week she didn’t have enough food to get her 13-year-old son through the weekend. She’d already visited smaller pantries with no luck before arriving at Upper Valley MEND’s food bank, where Clark helped load groceries into her car.
“She said, ‘this won't-even…’ and then stopped herself to say, ‘I mean, this is great. I’m really grateful,’” Clark said.
Many low-income Washington residents dealt with delays to their food stamps at the start of this month. The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, also known as SNAP, provides financial assistance for eligible households to purchase food.
On Friday, Governor Bob Ferguson announced households that were scheduled to receive their monthly benefits between Nov. 1 and Nov. 7 have received 100% of their SNAP benefits for November.
According to a report from U.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell (D-WA), more than 9,000 people receive SNAP benefits in Chelan County, upwards of 18,000 people in Grant, and more than 4,000 people in Douglas. Statewide nearly one million people receive federal food assistance.
On Thursday, a judge from Rhode Island ordered the Trump administration to provide full benefits by Fri., Nov. 7, saying the United States Department of Agriculture must use contingency funds to pay for full November SNAP benefits. On Tuesday Karoline Leavitt, White House press secretary, said they would be “fully complying” and would partially fund food aid during the shutdown. The status of December SNAP benefits was not immediately clear Friday afternoon
The U.S Department of Agriculture planned to freeze payments to the SNAP program starting Nov. 1 because of the government shutdown, which is the longest in U.S. history. In response, 25 states, including Washington, challenged the pause, stating the administration had a legal obligation to keep the food assistance program open.
“Thanks to multiple lawsuits, and repeated court orders, hundreds of thousands of Washingtonians across our state finally have the SNAP benefits they need to put food on the table,” Ferguson said in a press release. “Shockingly, this administration continues to work to withhold food assistance from those who need it most. President Trump needs to stop fighting to keep food from hungry families, and focus on re-opening the government.”
In response to the SNAP crisis, the governor had directed $2.2 million per week to food banks during the stall.
Food banks are seeing people stock up
Across North Central Washington, food donation centers say people are lining up outside their doors, and calling frequently to see what is available. And volunteers are rushing to fill shelves with food.
Mike Malmin, the executive director at Serve Wenatchee, a Christian-based organization that helps families with resources from food to rental assistance, said people are worried about getting food. The group recently closed their doors due to a flood at their downtown location and rushed to open their doors at a new location at Trinity United Methodist Church in East Wenatchee
‘We’re seeing potential government cuts come down. We’ve been closed because of a flood that essentially totaled our organization. Our priority has been getting reopened, the best thing we can do is get food out on the street. There’s a sense of anxiety and when people don’t know if they are going to get access to SNAP and purchase food they start to get creative trying to access food,” said Malmin.
On Wednesday, Serve Wenatchee announced it will be increasing the amount of food that clients can receive per visit by 25% to help support individuals impacted by SNAP funding.
At Wenatchee Rescue Mission, Scott Johnson, the executive director, said they have been getting many inquiries for when they will start up their food box program. The mission is an emergency shelter that helps people who are in crisis. Its main goal is to prevent homelessness. They also provide emergency food and up to 2,100 warm meals to people in need seven days a week.
‘We’ve seen families here eating since SNAP has stopped. I’ve seen families eating here more than we ever have. It’s a domino effect there’s so many people in need that already have the group you serve. Now, you’ve got a secondary type of people that aren’t used to being in need for food. They have paid jobs and don’t know what to do,” said Johnson.
Alan Walker from Chelan-Douglas Community Action Council, a social service organization that connects low-income people with resources, said many people have been seeking food assistance. He said about 80% of people who receive their resources are working families, and another large percentage are seniors.
“Thursday we were hit pretty hard. We had probably 25 to 30% more people come through on Thursday than we typically see,” said Walker. ‘We see lots of widows who are 70 to 85 years old, and they’re scared. Our volunteers are here with open arms and are here to help you,” said Walker.
According to Walker, the group received $62,000 from the Washington State Department of Agriculture on Wednesday morning. They are unsure if that is a one time award or if that is continuous.
More Resources in the area:
In the Wenatchee Valley multiple groups are holding food drives to address the need for food assistance. Listed below are a few.
Wenatchee Rotary hosts a “Fill the Bus” food drive to support local families affected by SNAP. The drive is from Nov. 8-9. Drop off locations are at Albertson’s from 9 a.m. -3 p.m. and at the Wenatchee Wild hockey game from 5 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, as well as Grocery Outlet on Sunday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
On Saturday the Wenatchee Valley Firefighters Union will host a food drive for Serve Wenatchee from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Wenatchee Rescue Mission accepts food donations and is seeking pasta, peanut butter and canned protein. A full list can be found on its Facebook. People can drop off donations at the Mission’s main location.
