In this photo taken May 19, 2017, Cindy Gustafson helps pack bags of food for the Backpack Buddies program at Second Harvest Food Bank in Nazareth, Pa. The program faces a loss of federal funding under the budget proposed by President Donald Trump’s administration.
Michael Rubinkam / AP Photo
Michael Rubinkam / AP Photo
In this photo taken May 19, 2017, Cindy Gustafson helps pack bags of food for the Backpack Buddies program at Second Harvest Food Bank in Nazareth, Pa. The program faces a loss of federal funding under the budget proposed by President Donald Trump’s administration.
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(Harrisburg) — It’s hard to quantify just how many more people are using the region’s food pantries as a result of the coronavirus, but anecdotally, Amy Hill is hearing the need has tripled when compared to this week last year.
“Some of our agencies have reported three times the number of clients they’re used to serving,” said Hill, who is the director of community engagement for the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank. “We are seeing increased demand.”
She doesn’t know of another time when this kind of demand has been put on food banks.
And neither do officials at the York County Food Bank, where they are are busier than they have been in their 40-year history.
Brett Sholtis / Transforming Health
Vegetables are shown in a cooler at the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, Dec. 3, 2019.
According to a press release issued by the York County Food Bank, in scaling up their operations to meet the demand, they found the current warehouse did not have enough space.
They have now moved to the East York Emergency Food Hub, 1094 Haines Road, which is about five times larger with 82,000 square feet. The space was provided by Kinsley Properties, and many other businesses and groups have been helping.
“This new Emergency Food Hub is a game changer for us,” York County Food Bank CEO and President Jennifer Brillhart said. “We will now be able to fully serve the growing numbers that are in need of food assistance in York County.”
Similarly, Hill said the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank is operating out of a new, larger facility, from where they package and truck food donations to their network of 1,000 partners — individual food pantries, soup kitchens, shelters and the like. They are not publicizing the location of the new warehouse, but she said it’s bigger and in the Harrisburg area.
And the new location not only helps with the increased demand for food, but it allows volunteers and staff to practice social distancing and all of the necessary protections as they contend with the coronavirus, Hill said.
Volunteers and staff members are also packaging food in pre-packed boxes. That way, food pantry clients can just pull up, pop their trunks, and volunteers can place pre-packed boxes, along with some frozen meat and fresh fruit, in their cars. This cuts down on both long lines and person-to-person contact, Hill said.
Food banks see fluctuations in demand as economic times change. Last year, they saw increased demand during the federal government shut down, but now, that pales in comparison to what they’re seeing.
“This is on a much more massive scale,” Hill said. “We’re seeing lots of people who, for the first time in their lives, are wondering how they’re going to pay for their groceries.”
Record-shattering unemployment and closed schools are major factors, but in any time during economic uncertainty, the first people who are hurt are usually those who are already living the edge, financially. Lower-paying hourly workers may see their hours cut back, putting them further and further into a bad situation and in need of food-bank services, she said.
For those who are able to help the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, Hill said there are three ways to do that.
First, don’t horde food. Many of of the food bank’s donations come from grocery stores, and if there is no surplus, the amount of food and items that can be given to the needy is limited.
“Buy only what you need for you and your family,” she said.
Second, don’t donate actual food items to the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank, but make financial donations instead. While individual food pantries may be accepting food donations, Hill said the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank itself cannot accept food from individuals out of both safety and logistics reasons.
While chances are minimal of the coronavirus spreading through packaging, she said the food bank doesn’t want to risk anyone’s safety, and with the scale of their operation, it’s too labor intensive to collect small amounts of food from individuals.
Online, virtual food drives and financial donations are what would help most and what is needed, she said.
And third, if you’re healthy and able bodied, the food bank could always use volunteers. And their volunteers have been great through all of this.
“I’m always humbled and amazed at how generous our community is and how the people of central Pennsylvania care about their neighbors,” she said. “I think people genuinely understand our entire community needs help, and they’re willing to share, and we’re enormously grateful for it.”
The organization’s motto, “We’re better together,” is more true now than ever, she added.
“We’ll meet the demand and do the best we can because our neighbors are willing to step up and help,” she said.
Both donations and volunteer opportunities can be found on the Central Pennsylvania Food Bank’s website.
Similarly, you can also visit the York County Food Bank for more information and ways to help.
PennLive and The Patriot-News are partners with PA Post.
