MAPLE FALLS, Wash. — During the height of COVID-19, the federal government boosted its financial support of the SNAP program in Washington, in turn supporting roughly half a million households in the state. But much like the fresh food it aimed to dole out, that came with an expiration date, too: March 1.
It has now been eight months since that emergency support ended, and Foothills Food Bank shared with KING 5 how they-- and the community they serve-- have been managing.
"When those SNAP benefits dropped, people... yeah. It was huge. It was very, very obvious that people were struggling, and people were telling us about it," said Noelle Beecroft, the board president of the Foothills Food Bank in East Whatcom County. "We heard some cases of people getting over $200 a month and then it dropping to $20.”
She added, "18% of all households in our ZIP code visit the food bank consistently."
In recent months, access to nutritional food items has become an increasing challenge among many in the area, according to the food bank board.
"The amount that people were taking, went from, 'This would be nice to have,' to, 'This is what I need to have'," said Nathan Schaetzel, board member of the Foothills Food Bank.
In addition to the changes to benefits, dine-in and take-out options in rural East Whatcom County are few and far between. And, the closest large grocery store is about 35-40 minutes away from the food bank itself.
For residents in the area, stakes are high in this time of adversity.
"People line up here hours before we open," said Beecroft.
The food bank’s feeling the strain, too.
"During COVID we had a ton of funding coming through the door, so we were able to keep these shelves stocked. Now it is much more of a challenge," said Beecroft.
Beecroft said her team of volunteers has even had to make some changes this year to how much of certain products customers can take.
"Now we do have some limits on some things," she said.
Another challenge to being in a rural area, Beecroft said, is recruiting. Foothills Food Bank is currently without an executive director, and its team hopes anyone interested will reach out. Additionally, they hope that people will help them in their mission by volunteering time or setting up recurring monthly donations to help bring food to all people in need.
"Since the last six months in 2021, to our previous six months, it’s doubled the amount of households that are visiting us," said Schaetzel.
Aly Robinson, the Foothills Food Bank Board's vice president, added, "Something we would love to do, when we have capacity, is mobile distribution. So, taking the truck to different communities that are smaller and have similar issues with accessing food."
Visit their website to learn how you can help them overcome barriers to hunger.
KING 5’s annual Home Team Harvest drive to benefit Northwest Harvest is underway. This year’s goal is to raise 23 million meals.
Ways to donate:
- Online through Northwest Harvest
- Visit your local Safeway or Albertsons to give $5, $10 or $12 toward grocery cards.
- Make in-person donations at two locations on Dec. 2 between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m.
Rainier Safeway: 9262 Rainier Ave. S., Seattle, WA 98118
Everett Safeway: 5802 134th Place SE, Everett, WA 98208
Watch the Home Team Harvest broadcast special on Dec. 2 at 10 a.m. on KING 5, KING5.com and KING 5+.