Federal cutbacks to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) have left millions of Americans struggling to put food on the table. In Newton, local organizations are stepping up to fill the gap and ensure residents continue to have access to essential food resources.
Putting food on the table
Greg Reibman, president and CEO of the Charles River Regional Chamber, said he’s dismayed that the federal government has left so many families without adequate support.
“It’s unbelievably cruel to think that we are such a prosperous, well-off nation and we can’t find a way to feed our most vulnerable,” Reibman said.
During a routine meeting of the Chamber’s Dining Collaborative on Tuesday, October 28, Ron Stoloff, owner of Blue Ribbon BBQ, proposed that restaurants join forces to help residents losing SNAP benefits through donating a portion of their gift card sales.
The Chamber adopted this program and has prepared promotional materials and encouraged restaurants to participate in whatever way they can. Stoloff noted that each restaurant can choose to donate between 10 and 25 percent of its gift card sales depending on its financial situation.
Blue Ribbon BBQ has been a Newton fixture for decades.
“We don’t exist without our customers,” he said. “Some of them are struggling, some are better off than others, but everybody is faced with these challenges. If there is something we can do as an organization to give back and support the community that’s been supportive of us over the years, we do what we can.”
For Stoloff, the program offers something tangible in a discouraging moment.
“People feel frustrated and helpless in the current environment,” he said. “One person has trouble making any direct impact, but collectively, many individuals make a movement.”
Reibman said Newton’s restaurant community has stepped up.
“They’ve had a tough time recovering from the pandemic,” Reibman said. “In spite of all that, we have restaurants that are raising their hands and say they want to help others.”
More than 20 restaurants have joined so far, each business to donate a percentage of its gift card sales through Nov. 26 to Spoonfuls, Inc.
Reibman said Spoonfuls was chosen for its speed and reach.
Reibman added that restaurants that are not officially on the list are assisting in other ways such as donating to food pantries and sending meals.
‘The safety net to the safety net’
Spoonfuls, Inc., a Newton-based nonprofit, recovers food that would otherwise go to waste and delivers it directly to community organizations feeding residents in need.
Liz Miller, the organization’s senior community relations manager, said Spoonfuls’ work centers on recovery and distribution – moving food from grocery stores, wholesale distributors, farms, and other institutions into the hands of people who can use it. The group partners with about 200 organizations statewide, including several in Newton.
Miller told Fig City News that the demand for food has surged since the SNAP cuts began.
“Food insecurity has been at record-breaking rates for a long time, but in recent weeks and even just in the past several business days, we’ve received so many more inquiries from folks looking for food.”
Miller said there’s a growing sense of concern – and, in some cases, panic – within the organization as it tries to keep up with the demand.
Miller said the Chamber’s gift card initiative came together quickly but builds on longstanding partnerships with many of the restaurants in the Dining Collaborative.
“We’re very grateful that the Chamber thought of us and brought us into the pool for this program,” Miller said.
Spoonfuls employs a professional recovery team that collects and delivers food daily to ensure efficiency. Miller said the team is constantly fielding concerns from partner stores in the wake of this crisis as the crisis impacts stores economically as well. Miller said food recovery is critical at a time like this.
“We sometimes call it the safety net to the safety net,” Miller said. “These cuts don’t affect the way we operate. We are able to be especially useful at this moment.”
‘The net’s falling apart’
At the Centre Street Food Pantry, operating out of the side annex of the Trinity Episcopal Church, crates of carrots, potatoes, butternut squash, and whole turkeys lined the walk-in freezer on Tuesday afternoon as volunteers packed grocery bags with milk, eggs, bread, and pie. Families and other clients pulled up to the curb to collect the food they need.
As Executive Director Rose Saia moved through the annex preparing to serve roughly 350 families—about 20 percent more than usual, she told Fig City News, “I expect we’ll still have to turn some away.”
The Newton-based pantry, which also serves Brookline, Needham, Waltham, Watertown, and Wellesley, typically provides food for about 1,100 households each month. Since the SNAP cuts began, staff expect that number to climb to 1,500 – a 35% increase.
“I’ve been here six years, through COVID, inflation, food shortages, and all kinds of things,” Saia said. “I’ve never said we might have to turn people away because the demand is so big.”
Despite surging need, the pantry is determined to ensure every family leaves with food to sustain them for several days. The team has stocked up on fresh produce, dairy, protein, and personal-care products.
Saia said the SNAP cutbacks will hit seniors and families with young children the hardest, as many had relied on a network of resources held together by SNAP benefits, school meals, and local assistance programs.
“Now the net’s falling apart for them,” she said.
Saia said the pantry is even seeing many returning clients who had not needed food assistance for months. She said many people in Newton, who on the outside look like they are doing fine, are in reality struggling and have to seek out meals at the pantry to support their families when a crisis like the SNAP rollback comes around.
Centre Street sources most of its food through the Greater Boston Food Bank, with fresh donations from local producers like Spoonfuls and Boston Area Gleaners. It also purchases products like loaves of bread from Calise Bakery. It provides “Kids Club Bags” for children, packed with easy-to-make breakfasts and lunches, and “Breakfast Bags” with milk, eggs, and cheese for anyone turned away late in the day.
“Even if SNAP returns to full levels by the end of the month, it will probably ripple through Christmas,” Saia said.
Community response
Mayor Ruthanne Fuller announced a citywide food drive last week, encouraging residents to drop off non-perishable items and personal care products at Newton City Hall, fire stations, the Newton Free Library, police headquarters, and other municipal sites. Participating community partners include Village Bank, Eastern Bank, the West Suburban YMCA, Family Access of Newton, and the John M. Barry Boys & Girls Club.
Items most needed include cereal, soups, canned beans, pasta, cooking oil, coffee and tea, shelf-stable milk, and personal hygiene products. City officials said financial donations remain the most effective way to help, directing residents to contribute to the Centre Street Food Pantry, Newton Food Pantry, Arabic Baptist Church Pantry, or Newton Neighbors Helping Neighbors.
On Saturday, November 1, the 5th-grade class at Jackson Walnut Park School launched a food drive for the Newton Food Pantry as part of the school’s Fall Family Picnic. “We know there are families who are struggling, and we want to make sure we are doing our part to help in any way we can,” said Head of School Patricia Gray. Students will continue collecting donations through November 21.
Meanwhile, regional organizations are providing emergency support: Project Bread’s FoodSource Hotline (1-800-645-8333) offers free, multilingual assistance connecting residents to meals and food programs, while the United Way of Massachusetts Bay has activated its United Response Fund to help communities affected.
Residents in need of direct help can contact Newton’s Health and Human Services Department at 617-796-1420 or the Older Adult Services Department at 617-796-1660 for assistance.
