Amid economic instability and state budget cuts, local food pantries and soup kitchens are already feeling the pinch of funding decreases as demands on their services rise. Still, many coordinators fear the worst may be yet to come.
“We’ve been able to meet the demands so far,” said Jane Dorman, coordinator of the St. Mary’s Episcopal Church pantry on West 126th Street. However, she added, “I’m afraid we’re going to bump into a brick wall pretty soon.”
According to the New York City Human Resources Administration, demand for meals in March 2008 was 9 percent higher than it was a year before. The following month, Albany cut funding for the Hunger Prevention and Nutrition Assistance Program by 16 percent. In late August, legislators slashed another $1.2 million, or 6 percent.
The majority of soup kitchens and food pantries operate through a limited number of funding sources. According to Alberta Shumpert, a coordinator for the Shiloh Church of Christ food pantry on West 128th Street, “Everything comes from non-profit and government,” including contributions from the Food Bank of New York, United Way, City Harvest, and government grants. Many organizations have now begun to see their grants diminished.
“We were just awarded a food grant that was cut,” said Craig Cobb, program supervisor for the Harlem Dowling West Side Center near West 124th Street. Fortunately, it was “cut by a minimal percentage,” he said.
The St. Mary’s Episcopal Church pantry on West 126th Street has undergone similar cuts, according to coordinator Janet Dorman. “All of our grants,” she said, “have been cut over the past couple of years, particularly the city grant, which was cut in half this fall,” in addition to state funding that “has been cut a couple of times.”
The current economic turmoil also affects the organizations’ output. “More and more people come to the food pantry,” Dorman said. “We’ve easily doubled in the last year and a half.”
The West Harlem Center, which operates a public food pantry on Fridays, has also seen a marked growth in demand. “I cannot express how significantly the Friday pantry requests have increased,” Cobb said. “This has all happened over the last four to five months.” At the Shiloh Church, Shumpert said, “We get calls from people from the Bronx asking if we’re going to be open tomorrow, or from Lower Manhattan.”
So far, most organizations have been able to continue normal operations, but coordinators are concerned about what will happen next. Cobb said that “all of the food pantries in the area have been experiencing similar things,” and a handful have shut down.
“First we’ll try to get more funds and food by asking for more donations,” Dorman said. “If we don’t have enough we’ll probably limit how often people can come or ... cut the limit we put in each bag.”
Coordinators called on the state not only to restore the programs’ funding, but also to increase job offerings and to partner with farms to acquire surplus produce.
But for now, as Michael Ennes, chef for the Broadway Community soup kitchen on West 114th Street, said in an e-mail, “The water’s getting hotter and hotter, and we’re just swimming around.”
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