Last fall I started hearing rumblings about food pantries in Springfield running low on food long before Thanksgiving hit. In October I began chatting with some of the local pantries, and sure enough, supplies were running low, even as the need was going up as people struggled with the realities of a recession. The result was this story and a lesson learned — food pantries can use our help all year long, not just during the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons. In addition to the story, I compiled a list of all the food pantries in Springfield and the surrounding counties so readers could at a glance find a pantry to help. I also included tips for organizing a food drive.
Supplies tight at local food pantries
Oct. 26, 2009
On Friday, some shelves at Kumler Outreach Ministries’ food pantry on Springfield’s north end were empty.
There was no canned fruit, spaghetti noodles, chili, or pork and beans. There were four jars of peanut butter, some jelly, several bags of corn flakes and Ramen noodles, loaves of bread and a few heads of cabbage, as well as some other supplies. The freezer was stocked with bags of frozen corn, individually wrapped tilapia filets and other foods.
Tight food supplies have become the rule, not the exception, all around central Illinois. Food-pantry coordinators say they are seeing more new faces in a tough economy and are concerned about their ability to help.
Some report donations are down, while others say contributions are steady. But they all say the number of people needing food is on the rise, and that means pantries must stretch limited resources.
Pantry staffs say they are working hard to find the best bargains on food, seeking out more donations from individuals and companies, and sometimes not filling a needy family’s grocery bag quite as full, just to make sure there is enough to go around.
“There is no doubt in my mind that until they get jobs in this area, it’s going to continue,” said Rebecca Eaton, administrator of the Jacksonville Area Community Food Center, which operates a food pantry from 9 a.m. until 1 p.m. Monday through Friday.
Between Oct. 1, 2008 and Sept. 30, 2009, the Jacksonville pantry served about 7,700 people compared to 6,600 and 5,600 the previous two years. On Friday, the pantry provided food for 15 families, of which five were new clients.
“It does that almost every day. It’s just getting crazier and crazier,” Eaton said. “We try to help the poor, the working poor and everybody in between, above or below. We just don’t want to see people go hungry.”
Pam Molitoris, executive director of the Central Illinois Food Bank, which provides food and commodities to dozens of area food pantries and residential social service agencies, said demand traditionally outweighs supply.
“We’ve had hungry people for many years. The problem now is that, given the economy, we’re seeing upwards of a 15 percent increase (in need) throughout all our counties,” she said.
The good news, Molitoris said, is that the federal farm bill provided more funds for commodities, and a retail-store donation program allows businesses to donate food that is still good but can no longer be sold.
Last year the food bank distributed 4.7 million pounds of food to about 165 agencies. This year it is on target to distribute about 5.5 million pounds.
“But we never have enough. I want to make that point very clear. We’re never satisfied with how much we have, but we have had more food this year than any other year in the seven years I’ve been here,” she said.
Sharon Brown, executive director of Kumler Outreach Ministries, said demand is up. On Tuesday the pantry served 123 people, on Wednesday 155, on Thursday 200 and about 100 on Friday. People can visit the pantry only once every 30 days.
She said donations have stayed steady this year compared to 2008, but the increased demand has put a strain on the agency’s budget. Anecdotally, first-time pantry users are up, she said, and she has heard stories of job layoffs, cutbacks in hours and changes in public aid benefits the major reasons.
Food-pantry traffic used to pick up in the third week of each month. The increase now starts about the middle of the month – a signal that people are unable to stretch their money as far as they used to, Brown said.
Many of those are employed. Earlier this year Kumler added evening hours to accommodate people who work and couldn’t make it there during the day. The pantry is open from 5:30 to 6:30 p.m. the third Thursday of each month, and about 30 people show up each time.
“We’ll see people come straight in with their fast-food uniforms on. I think sometimes we think of people needing help because they don’t have a job, but a lot of people are just having trouble making ends meet,” Brown said.
Until the economy steadies, it’s hard to know how much more demand will increase and how much more strapped food pantries might become.
“Just from what we see, and this is just my gut, I don’t anticipate a change at least through the end of this year and probably into early next year,” Brown said, noting that there continues to be threats of state job layoffs and other closures.
Molitoris said her biggest worry is that the need continues to outweigh what’s available.
“I think the thing I’m probably most concerned about is we hear about the economy and the recession, but even as the economy recovers I believe, personally, that the folks that are going to recover last, if at all, are those folks who don’t have much,” she said.
“The folks who are accessing food pantries that maybe were just making it, maybe they were both working the $8- to $10-an-hour job, and one has lost his job now, I don’t know how they’re going to recover. We’re seeing lots of new faces at the food pantries, and that’s a great concern for me.”
But there is a silver lining, she noted.
“The one thing that I’ve always been able to count on is the community. They have always been very supportive, both through food drives and cash donations,” she said. “I know times are really tough out there, but I would be making a mistake if I didn’t continue telling people we continue to need their help.”
Want to help?
There are several ways to help your local food pantry.
“It doesn’t matter what you do to help, what matters is that you help,” said Pam Molitoris, executive director of the Central Illinois Food Bank. “If that means a cash donation or organizing a food drive or spreading the word that the help that is needed, all of those things are very important.”
Among the items that food pantries typically need:
* canned fruit, vegetables and meat
* cereal
* pasta
* pasta sauces
* canned soup and chili
* macaroni and cheese
* juice
* Hamburger Helper
* pie filling
* peanut butter and jelly
* anything that can be used to make a holiday dinner
* soap and toothpaste
* laundry detergent
* toilet paper
* diapers
* cash
Want to organize a food drive?
The students and staff at Springfield Christian School have their yearly food drive down to a science. Each year they collect hundreds of shopping bags full of food and other items, load them on a semi trailer at the school and take them to the Inner City Mission, a homeless shelter on North Seventh Street.
The hefty donation provides a foundation for the mission to get through each winter and spring and provide meals for those it helps. Additional donations from organizations and individuals help the mission provide meals the entire year.
On Friday, fifth-graders from the school unloaded the trailer assembly-line style and helped stock the mission’s shelves.
“It really is eye-opening for them because of lot of these kids have never seen several people living in a room the size of their own bathrooms,” said fifth-grade teacher Teresa Wolters. “The kids constantly ask afterward how can we come back and help.”
The Central Illinois Food Bank has several tips for hosting a successful food drive to help stock your local food pantry.
* Select a leadership committee to plan strategy and food drive theme.
* Determine a start date and length of time for the drive.
* Set a goal by determining how many pounds or dollars you want to collect.
* Contact the food pantry to find out what they need the most.
* Get the word out to your coworkers or organization members about the food drive.
* Create competitions, offer incentives and be creative.
* Arrange a time to drop off the donations.
“I would advise families or a group to do things like this. It’s just really eye opening for the kids. I think every child needs to experience somebody else’s life for a bit, especially somebody less fortunate,” Wolters said.
Looking for a food pantry to help?
Using information from the Central Illinois Food Bank, we’ve compiled a list of area food pantries arranged by county in the newspaper’s circulation area. See the list at http://extras.sj-r.com/r/foodpantrylist.