“It’s hard to believe that people could survive on so little,” Chris said after looking at the qualifications for the CSFP Program. “Unfortunately, it is all too real.” Nearly 50,000 seniors in our 34-county service area live at or below the poverty level.
In the 34-counties the Food Bank serves, approximately 16% of people are food insecure, including: 1 in 3 children; approximately 1 in 10 senior citizens; and many members of our veteran community. The Food Bank operates Farm Bill programs such as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), The Emergency Food Assistance Program (TEFAP), and the Commodity [...]
Once a month Nello & Lossie make a special trip to Enfield to pick up their box, along with hundreds of other Halifax County seniors.
When our Benefits Outreach Coordinators travel across Food Bank CENC’s 34 county service area, they hear a lot of “No.” Do you receive food stamps? No.Do you want to see if you’re eligible for them? No. It's their jobs to increase access to FNS Benefits (known nationally as the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program or SNAP and [...]
By Zach Nissen, Food Bank Food & Nutrition Services Outreach Coordinator Accepting help can be difficult for a person who has worked their whole life to build a secure future. Like Mary, a 91-year-old widow living in Durham whom I recently met while doing outreach in the community. She broke her hip earlier this year [...]
“It’s hard to be old. It’s harder to be old and poor. And it’s even harder than that to be old, poor, and sick.” –Ms. Claudette, Bread For Life food pantry Food insecurity affects people of all ages. But unique dietary needs related to aging, medical conditions, and impeded mobility make seniors particularly vulnerable to [...]
Choices – we all face them in our lives and some are harder than others. Helen knows all about making difficult choices. Now in her 70s, Helen formerly owned and operated a small business for years until the economy forced her to close the doors. Making final payments to her vendors only added to her [...]
By Molly Rivera As a Food Bank staff member, I've traveled to many churches, schools, community centers, and food pantries across our 34 county service area to meet people living with food insecurity and help tell the story of hunger in our communities. I've visited a Kids Cafe in Rockingham, a food pantry in [...]
This post is part of a series on Older Americans Month. We encourage you to raise awareness and join the conversation by sharing this post with your friends and family to help the more than 43,000 seniors who struggle with hunger in our region. “It’s hard to be old. It’s harder to be old and poor. [...]
After a lifetime of contributing to society, over 43,000 seniors in our 34 county service area are living on fixed incomes that often force them to choose between paying for healthcare and buying groceries. We meet many clients at the soup kitchens, food pantries and shelters we serve who are attempting to live—during what should [...]
