Overview:
The Community Food Pantry at Athol High School has seen an increase in the number of people it serves, and organizers are preparing for a further influx of new clients as SNAP funds run out due to the ongoing federal government shutdown. If the shutdown persists past Oct. 31 and no spending bills are passed to fund the program, 42 million Americans will lose their SNAP benefits. In Massachusetts, more than 1.1 million people, including a significant number of children, seniors, and people with disabilities, will be affected. Community Food Pantry Executive Director Shirley Mitchell and Miranda Jennings, executive director of the Winchendon Community Action Committee, both said they are preparing for an influx of new clients as SNAP funds run out.
ATHOL – In 2024, the Community Food Pantry at Athol High School served 7,395 people.
In October, that number has risen to 8,299 with two months left in this year, and organizers are now bracing for the impending loss of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) due to the ongoing federal government shutdown.
If this shutdown persists past Oct. 31 and no spending bills are passed to fund the program, 42 million Americans, will lose their SNAP benefits.
According to state Department of Transitional Assistance, more than 1.1 million people living in Massachusetts – about one in six residents – receive SNAP benefits. Of that number, about one-third are children, 26% are seniors over the age of 60, and 31% are people with disabilities.
DTA data shows that 3,399 Athol residents used SNAP benefits in September. Additionally, 2,114 Orange residents, 2,128 Winchendon residents, 163 Petersham residents, 133 Royalston, residents, 166 Wendell residents, 80 New Salem residnts and 106 Warwick residents used SNAP benefits.
In Franklin County, 12,000 residents will be impacted, and in Hampshire County, 13,000 residents will lose access.
Community Food Pantry Executive Director Shirley Mitchell and Miranda Jennings, executive director of the Winchendon Community Action Committee, each said they are preparing for an influx of new clients as SNAP funds run out.
Jennings said that will be on top of what has been a steadily increasing number of people in need of assistance this year.
“We’ve already had a few people come by and ask when they can sign up,” Jennings said. “And we’ve already been having an increase of people – I think about five new families every week have been signing up for the pantry before this because of the cost of living. So, even before the SNAP benefits are taken away, people are struggling to make ends meet. The benefits don’t always cover all the food they need in the first place.”
“You can imagine the conversations that myself, my staff, other people have been having with us about the SNAP cuts,” said Mitchell.
As in Jennings’ case, Mitchell said the Athol pantry has already seen more people walking through its doors. Just last Wednesday, she said 91 people came in during their hours of 3 p.m. to 5 p.m. Mitchell added that she has also received inquiries from residents in Orange.
The Winchendon pantry does its food distribution by appointment and Jennings said that more appointments means more hours, resulting in a cost increase and a need for more volunteers.
“We would increase staff hours, but we don’t have the funding for that, so we’d mostly be just chipping in and volunteering,” Jennings said. “But we’re here and we’re ready to bridge this gap and help people, but it’s going to be an effort on behalf of our community and our staff to go above and beyond.”
Jennings also said that the SNAP cuts won’t just impact the food.
“When people get fewer benefits from SNAP, they have to spend more money on food, which means they’re probably having to make choices of not paying for rent or heat or other things,” she said. “So, we’re probably going to seen an uptick in other economic crises arising from this, which we also work with people at the CAC to address.”
Greg Vine can be reached at gvineadn@gmail.com.