Dear Friend of The Other Way,
Late last week Michigan (and other states) received word that, due to the federal government shutdown, food assistance benefits known as SNAP (or Bridge Card, in Michigan) will pause indefinitely.
WHAT DOES THIS MEAN?
This means that people in our neighborhood who rely on hundreds of dollars of food assistance each month to survive will be cut off completely starting next week, until the shutdown is resolved, or another solution is reached. Those affected represent many of our friends and neighbors who have no safety net to fall back on, and cannot cover the costs while elected officials try to find a solution. It also means we expect to be VERY busy in our food pantry as a result.
WHAT IS THE OTHER WAY DOING TO HELP?
Already The Other Way is showing up on social media posts as a place to source food for people affected by this – and we will be here for people, to the extent that we can. We are stretching our budget and stocking up to prepare both for the pause in benefits, as well as the jump in pantry visitors that we are already seeing as people hear the news. This comes at a time when we are already seeing some of the highest numbers we’ve seen of people visiting our pantry – nearly 1,000 per month.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
DONATE – If you are in a position to do so, financial contributions are the most efficient way to support. It allows us to purchase food based on the real-time needs we’re seeing.
