Nov. 1—From tuna fish cans to ramen noodles, Salvation Army staff and volunteers dumped donated food items into white cardboard boxes under a light rain Saturday as part of the organization’s one day “emergency food drive.” The effort was sparked by the murky future of federal food assistance and a record-breaking turnout at the Salvation Army’s Spokane food pantry last month.
“We are raising food just because of the increased need based on the government shutdown and some of the challenges that surround hard-working families right now,” said Capt. David Cain, county coordinator of the Salvation Army in Spokane.
The Trump administration declined to use $6 billion in emergency funding to fund food stamps, or Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, starting this weekend amid the government shutdown. However, two federal judges Friday ordered the Trump administration to use those funds to pay for food assistance. More than 40 million Americans, including 83,000 Spokane County residents, use the program to help them afford food.
The judges gave the Trump administration until Monday to come up with a plan to continue paying SNAP benefits, but it’s still unclear if and when those payments will resume.
Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson announced last week he would direct $2.2 million per week for additional funding for food banks in the state if a deal had not reached by Nov. 1.
Cain said he’s already seen an increase in families using the Salvation Army food pantry in north Spokane, located on Indiana Avenue between Lidgerwood and Ruby streets, before the start of November when food stamps were set to be paused.
Cain said the pantry, one of the largest food pantries in Spokane County, serves about 170 families per day. That average was exceeded several days in late October, including one day when more than 270 families turned out for food, the most ever at the food distribution center.
Saturday’s food drive was meant to restock the shelves to keep up with the “unprecedented demand,” seen not only in Spokane but Salvation Army Hope Market food pantries across the state, according to the organization in a news release.
Salvation Army staff and volunteers hosted the food drive, in partnership with Walmart, under a black Salvation Army canopy outside the doors of the Shadle Park Walmart in north Spokane.
The drive brought in an estimated 1 to 2 tons of food, according to the Salvation Army.
Christine Carlile and Victoria Nicodemus were some of the first to donate Saturday. When asked why they decided to give food, both women, who donated at different times, said, “People need to eat.”
“This is one of the wealthiest nations in the world,” Carlile said. “We shouldn’t have hungry people in this country. So, it just bothers me.”
The women donated cereal, dozens of cans of tuna fish, Top Ramen, soup, peanut butter, bread, spaghetti, macaroni and cheese and other canned foods.
Both called the federal government’s decision to pause SNAP benefits “ridiculous.”
“You shouldn’t use food or people’s medical benefits or things that people need as a political weapon,” Carlile said.
Nicodemus said she knows a lot of people with health issues who are on food stamps.
“Why take people’s food?” she said of the Trump administration’s decision. “That’s ridiculous.”
Cain said many people depend on SNAP benefits and food pantries to barely make ends meet. Several families who use the Salvation Army food pantry are on the cusp of homelessness and make difficult decisions between buying food and paying bills.
“We’re often that buffer between some of those really challenging decisions,” Cain said.
Cain said the end of months are generally the food pantry’s busiest times as people’s SNAP benefits run out, but given the federal food assistance uncertainties, Cain is not anticipating a slow down to start November.
The Salvation Army’s food pantry is under construction to add space, which is expected to be completed in December. Cain said the organization planned to close the pantry for two weeks to transition into the new space but decided against it because of the growing food needs in the community.
“We’re right at the edge of that construction project being finished, but we knew that this was not the time to do that, so we remained in our temporary space,” Cain said.
He said the renovated pantry, funded by a $500,000 grant from the city of Spokane, will triple in size and provide more foods that better accommodate people’s dietary restrictions and cultural preferences.
“We’re very excited in December to be opening our client-choice food pantry to better serve and more strategically serve the needs of these families,” Cain said.
The pantry will also test alternative hours to assist working families each Wednesday for the next three weeks, Cain said.
Starting this Wednesday, the pantry will open noon to 6:30 p.m. All other days will continue operating 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
All of the food drive’s donations Saturday will go to the Salvation Army’s Spokane pantry. The public can continue to donate food to the organization at 222 E. Indiana Ave. or by making monetary donations online at makingspokanebetter.org.
“This challenge, it pushes people over the edge if not for their community stepping up, and so one of the things we love about our Spokane neighbors and donors here is how generous and how open they are to coming alongside the need and supporting our struggling neighbors in these challenging times,” Cain said.
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