Volunteers provide food amid uncertainty over SNAP benefits
Shortly after 9 a.m. Saturday, Renee Thompson pulled up to a line of volunteers ready to load bread, produce and canned goods into her car.
Her monthly allotment of $112 in federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits was in doubt, so Thompson arrived at New Birth Missionary Baptist Church in Stonecrest around 9:40 p.m. Friday to ensure she’d get some food. She slept in her car.
“I knew I would get some food. They’re cutting the food stamps off,” the Lithonia resident said. “I need to eat.”
Thompson wasn’t alone. New Birth expected to serve 2,000 families on Saturday — twice the number it typically serves at its bimonthly food distribution.
Advocates for the hungry across metro Atlanta told similar stories this week as the Trump administration prepared to freeze SNAP benefits Saturday amid a federal government shutdown. About 1.3 million Georgians — 1 in 8 state residents — receive SNAP benefits.
The Atlanta Food Bank tapped $5 million in reserves to prepare for an expected surge in demand. Gwinnett County announced it’s allocating $250,000 to help families buy food and hygiene products, while DeKalb County prepared its own plans.
Friday, two federal judges ordered the Trump administration to use emergency reserves to continue funding the SNAP program. But it was unclear Saturday how long that funding would last and when recipients could expect to see the benefits.
That uncertainty weighed on Thompson on Saturday morning.
“I’m OK,” she said. “But there’s people out there that got families and kids that need to eat.”
Carla Stokes, executive pastor of ministries and outreach at New Birth, said the need for food is “rapidly increasing” amid the government shutdown.
“People are losing hope,” she said. “I’m glad they can come to the church and find hope here.”
The church did its part to spread that hope.
By 9 a.m., the line of vehicles waiting to get into New Birth was a mile long. About 500 volunteers directed traffic and distributed food.
They provided bags of fresh produce — potatoes, sweet potatoes, onions and cabbage. They provided sliced bread, bagels and English muffins. And they provided boxes of canned vegetables, macaroni and cheese and other shelf-stable foods.
Gospel music played while volunteers sang, smiled and greeted each vehicle. And the cars kept coming.
Sheila McKinney doesn’t receive SNAP benefits. But she’s retired and lives on a fixed income. She’d never sought food from New Birth before, but she’s having a hard time making ends meet.
McKinney arrived at the church at 11:30 p.m. Friday. She said she slept well in her car.
“This is just such a blessing,” McKinney said. “It’s meeting the needs of the people.”
Another retiree, Freddie Waters of Stone Mountain, has received food from New Birth before. But she knew Saturday would be busy, so she arrived at 3:30 a.m.
“Food is so expensive,” Waters said. “With or without a job, you almost can’t afford to eat.”
She said the church’s food ministry is a lifeline.
“It helps me with the essentials, so when I do go to the store I don’t have to spend so much.”
Stokes said the church typically distributes food to single parents, grandparents raising children and the unemployed or underemployed. But she said it was the suspension of SNAP benefits that led to Saturday’s big crowd.
“The government may be shut down, but the heavens are open,” Stokes said. “We are here as a people to stand together, to represent what the best of heaven is.”
About the Author
David Wickert writes about the state budget, finance and voting issues. Previously, he covered local government and politics in Gwinnett and Fulton counties. Before moving to Atlanta, he worked at newspapers in Illinois, Tennessee, Virginia and Washington.
