City awards $50K to Second Harvest Food Bank during increased demand due to SNAP uncertainty

With stalls in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits, many have turned to Second Harvest and food pantries it supplies for help.

“Our food bank, Second Harvest, and partner agencies are seeing and will likely continue to see record demand; demand that far outpaces the resources that are currently available, keeping in mind that Second Harvest already saw (federal) cuts earlier this year,” said Springfield Community Development Director Logan Cobbs Monday.

Alex Jackson, SHFB’s new executive director, said the food bank serves more than 50,000 individuals annually and supports more than 65 community pantries, providing the majority of their food. In the last month, the need has doubled and SHFB saw one pantry run out of food.

The organization is dipping into next year’s budget, already having spent about $100,000 of next year’s food funds, Jackson said.

“We did hear today that some SNAP benefits are going to be coming, but it’s going to be about half of what recipients were originally expecting, so we’re going to see a continual need,” Jackson said. “And on top of that, we’ve also seen federal workers not be paid. We did a distribution to the Air Force base last Thursday where we distribute over $20,000 worth of food to our federal workers here, members in uniform that have not been paid, so we’re getting hit from all different directions right now and we could really use this help.”

Credit: Jessica Orozco

Credit: Jessica Orozco

The federal government shut down Oct. 1, leading to thousands of federal workers being furloughed. The federal government previously said it would not pay out SNAP benefits beginning Nov. 1.

Following a court order, the federal government agreed to spend its contingency funds for SNAP to partially fund SNAP benefits, which Clark County residents use at a higher rate than state and national averages.

Second Harvest lost approximately $500,000 in government support that the organization had been expecting to receive when federal funding was cut earlier this year. In March, the feds canceled more than $200,000 for a federal food shipment.

SHFB also needs volunteers, having seen some call-offs recently, Jackson said. Anyone who wants to volunteer can visit theshfb.org/volunteer or call 937-325-8715. Cash donations can be dropped off at the food bank or mailed via check.

In Clark County, 24,386 households are on SNAP as of August, according to Department of Job and Family Services (DJFS) data.

The average monthly SNAP benefit for a Clark County household is $236.

In Ohio, SNAP benefits are staggered, meaning whatever date in a month a household is approved is the monthly date they will receive funds, Clark County DJFS Director Tom McGrath previously told this newspaper.

Unused benefits issued before Nov. 1 will still be available after that date on a person’s SNAP EBT card, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture.