Oh SNAP! Help Navigating the Food Benefits Pause
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All progress we ever hope to make toward healthy and resilient communities has basic human needs at the core. Our communities, our state, and our entire country are currently strategizing to protect one of those basic needs: access to healthy and affordable food. We wanted to keep you informed of some work that has been happening in our communities in response to the likelihood that SNAP recipients will not receive their benefits on November 1 due to the ongoing federal government shutdown. Here are a few highlights from our entire service area. Please note, information is very fluid and likely to change, maybe even before this newsletter reaches your inbox. Watch our social media for ways to find food resources and ways to help. We'll also be gathering information and links on a dedicated web page coming soon.
Douglas County
- Just Food convened a meeting of partners on October 28. UWKV attended and lent our support to Just Food, Ballard, and LiveWell Douglas County. We have encouraged them to use KawValleyVolunteers.Org to recruit volunteers and will help amplify this coordinated campaign of community support.
Shawnee County
- As part of a pre-existing conversation among local food pantries, UWKV and LiveWell Shawnee County co-convened a expanded gathering of more than 50 individuals October 30 at the Holliday Building in Topeka. The conversation included city government, local nonprofits, and representatives from the faith community. We facilitated conversation, asking them about greatest concerns, what they could lend to a collective effort, and who else needed to be included in the conversation. We will be part of a collaborative campaign of community support launching on November 1.
Jackson and Jefferson Counties
- We have a previous meeting scheduled in November with partners in Jackson County. We do not currently have partners doing work exclusively in Jefferson County. We are working to contact those doing the work in those communities to ensure we have updated information so we can list them, along with other resources from other counties, on our website (how to give money, food, and time).
