Turning The Tables: Locals Serve Hope Following Loss Of SNAP Benefits
by Stephanie Baker
As the federal government shutdown continues to be the longest in the nation’s history and Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) funding remains in question, local residents have come together to meet needs and fight food insecurity. Forty-two million Americans, or one in eight, receive assistance through SNAP. Without these benefits, many will rely on local food banks and other charitable resources to feed themselves and their families, adding to the already greater seasonal need for food assistance.
Within days of news reports that SNAP funding was at risk, local community members were creating Facebook groups and began coordinating community meals and organizations created plans to ensure food was available to all who need it.
Clarksville Housing Authority
The Clarksville Housing Authority will offer a total of 15 free meals for its residents throughout November, in response to the loss of full SNAP funding.
“We are trying to provide a meal during the weekends and during the holidays, lunches, and snacks. We won’t know the impact until further into the month. But as you can imagine, Thanksgiving and Christmas are fast approaching and when we usually encounter the greatest needs. These holidays are largely gifted from the employees. We don’t have the operating budget for all things necessary. We don’t let anyone go without food at any time of the year if we are aware of the needs at hand,” said Shelly Wood, CHA executive director.
“We want to ensure that none of our residents have food insecurities and are having their basic needs met. I anticipate there will be dilemmas for families with children. Most of our elderly don’t receive SNAP or it is very minimal, and they will face some dilemmas also. We will be meeting the needs as they come. We will welcome and would be blessed with any kind donation. At a time like this, we feel a great responsibility for bringing unity and conquering division,” she said.
Ozark Open Table
Whitney Santana of Ozark shared she had been inspired by the sentiment of “it all starts with a potluck…” She dreamed of a wholesome community gathering for over a year. Stories and food would be shared, as people truly got to know their neighbors, something reminiscent of the events she had helped host in Eureka Springs. The dream was a place where a mix of food and people collided, where people gathered not out of need, but just for the sake of gathering and community.
When SNAP benefits first became at risk, Santana knew this dream was no longer a want, but a need for the Ozark community.
“Strengthening communities while feeding bellies is the goal,” said Santana.
Santana said outstanding support from volunteers, Main Street Ozark, Ozark Area Chamber of Commerce, and the mayor and sheriff, have made the Ozark Open Table possible.
“The Open Table is an open invitation for all to join, for anyone to grab a seat,” said Santana. “The little people need to take care of each other. It’s a potluck. I don’t want to call it a soup kitchen. There’s no shame. We are all neighbors.”
Everyone is welcome to bring a dish, or not, but “don’t let it stop you from coming to the table,” she said. Even those without need are invited and encouraged to attend, as fostering community is a main goal.
The Open Table hosted its first meal, a chili and corn bread dinner, from 5-7 p.m., Tuesday, Nov. 11, at the Gardner Building, less than two weeks from when Santana had shared the idea with the Ozark community.
Santana said she hopes it “serves the plates of many.”
The Open Table is seeking a consistent venue to host its biweekly community potluck meals, and donations for its meals. For more information, join the Facebook group, Ozark Open Table: Community Potluck.
Clarksville Youth Athletics
Frederick Lee of the nonprofit, Clarksville Youth Athletics (CYA), has started a drive-thru food pantry in response to the delay of SNAP benefits.
“It’s really disheartening,” he said. Through working with youth in sports, he is aware of the needs of local children and families.
CYA is collecting shelf stable food items to benefit local families, encouraging families who can to search their own pantries for items to share with others. They are not accepting monetary donations.
“Say a prayer for these people who don’t have what they need,” said Lee.
Lee said he has often seen the long lines at the nearest food pantry and is hoping to provide help to meet the large need for food in the community.
Lee said there was a point in his life where he could relate to those in need and he is now “blessed enough to be able to help.”
The organization also plans to hold a turkey drive at the Marvin Vinson Center later this year, according to Lee.
Harps Grocery Store
Clarksville’s Harps is participating in a Blessing Bag program where customers can purchase a bag filled with groceries to be gifted to a family in need through a local food bank, a convenient way to donate while already shopping for their own groceries.
“No one in our community should have to go without food. With the SNAP benefits delay impacting families across our area, our Blessing Bags program makes it easy to help. Each bag is pre-filled with nonperishable food items. Just grab one, check out, and we’ll handle the rest,” said an announcement post for the campaign on the local Harps’ Facebook page.
Blessing Boxes
Blessing Boxes are located throughout Johnson and Franklin counties; the boxes offer a place to share items with those who need them. The “leave what you can and take what you need” philosophy provides a convenient way to share items with others.
Baking mixes, granola, boxed meal kits, rice, dried pasta, oatmeal, and cereal, are all requested items. Once the temperature reaches below freezing, canned goods are no longer a good option for outdoor blessing boxes, as they will freeze. While less convenient, dried beans can survive the cold winter temperatures.
Personal hygiene products are another category of needed items for a blessing box. Toothbrushes, toothpaste, deodorant, shampoo, conditioner, soap (liquid or bars), lotion, feminine hygiene products, tissues, and toilet paper are among the most needed hygiene items.
Unopened and unexpired, nonperishable items from your pantry at home are welcome at blessing boxes.
Paris Soup Kitchen
Taelor Ford took to Facebook to share her surprise the Paris community did not have a soup kitchen effort to help meet the needs of local families. She went on to set up a Facebook group and organize one herself with the help of others. Due to an overwhelming response from the community, the effort was able to hold its first meal within a week.
Ford, along with a group of fellow moms, has “created a village” to meet the needs of those around them. She said others have stepped up to help the soup kitchen become a reality, including Kayla Patterson, who has set up a “take what you need” table at the events.
“We the women, when the leaders fail, we the women wipe the tears and feed the hungry,” has become a mission statement of the group shared Ford.
The Paris Soup Kitchen meets at Union Bank Community Center each Tuesday to prep and serve a community meal. The event was relocated for Nov. 11 to Paris First Baptist Church due to flooding at the community center. For more information, needed food donations, and future location updates, join the Paris Soup Kitchen Facebook group.
Collection sites for nonperishable food donations are available at Danielle’s Salon, Haven of Hope, Paris Local Library, and True Grit Coffee Shop. The organization is also collecting essential items and household necessities, to help families who may have to choose between other needs and groceries this holiday season. Most needed items include hats, gloves, jackets, toilet paper, laundry detergent, toothpaste, toothbrush, shampoo, soap, deodorant, diapers, wipes, razors, children’s Tylenol and ibuprofen and children’s cold and flu medications. All clothing items must be clean to be donated, and medications and household items must be new and unopened. The collection site for these items is The Gateway on the Square.
Ford shared the mothers have discussed the positive effect participating is having on their children, making them more aware and willing to meet the needs of others.
Other Food Banks
For more information on how to volunteer or donate, reach out to any local food bank. The regulations on how to donate or volunteer can vary greatly from one organization to another, but all are working towards the same goal of fighting food insecurity in our community. According to Feeding America, food banks provide one meal for every nine provided by SNAP.
This story appears in the Nov. 12 issue of The Graphic, available online and at businesses throughout Franklin and Johnson counties. Subscribe or donate here to support more hometown journalism.
