Peter: Gratitude and Hope During Hard Times

I am happy to write to you with gratitude and hope. Thanks to the incredible support of our partners and donors, along with large investments in hunger relief made to federal nutrition programs by Congress, food insecurity in our 34-county service area did not rise as high as expected. The most recent data from Feeding America projects that the overall number of people living with food insecurity in our 34 counties is 588,000 individuals. This is lower than what we were projecting, with the impact of COVID-19, at this time last year.

While we are so thankful that food insecurity has not risen to the extreme levels projected, this still means approximately 40,000 more neighbors are food insecure than before the pandemic. We also know food insecurity numbers do not encompass all of those who need our help. Some of our friends and neighbors live right on the edge or find themselves in temporary situations of hardship. Individual economic recovery will take years for many in our area, just as it did after the Great Recession, and recovery from this crisis will be slower for populations that have been historically marginalized. That’s why we continue to establish partnerships with diverse partners, like the Haliwa-Saponi tribe.

Our partner agencies are still reporting a sustained 35% increase in the number of people visiting their pantries, soup kitchens, and other community programs. Rising food and gas prices are causing additional strain on folks who are already struggling to afford basics like rent, medicine, and food. This also impacts the Food Bank as we must expend more resources to keep the food flowing consistently into our service area.

We are so grateful for your partnership in times like these. My hope is that through initiatives in our new strategic plan, we can continue to build solutions that will truly allow us to see an impact in our community, and a further decrease of food-insecurity rates.

With Sincere Thanks,