The community is stepping up as many residents risk having their cupboards go bare when their SNAP benefits don’t get replenished starting Saturday.
Nearly 40,000 residents in Atlantic and Cape May counties depend on the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to buy food.
Food banks already stretched to their limits are preparing for an onslaught November is expected to bring, brought on by the federal government shutdown and budget impasse.
Organizations like Jewish Family Service of Atlantic & Cape May Counties, the Community FoodBank and No1HungryinEHC are working to fill the need, as volunteers and businesses pitch in to help collect more to refill their shelves.
“Our community is strong and together we will persevere,” said Angela Seri Krukauskas, who started No1Hungry with a small homemade pantry on her front yard.
She now has a storefront at 233 Philadelphia Ave. in Egg Harbor City will soon open as the new food pantry.
Several businesses are offering drop-off points for donations that they will then get to those services.
The Community FoodBank of New Jersey wrote on Facebook that they are “preparing for a surge in need — because hunger doesn’t wait for paychecks or politics."
They invite people to donate, volunteer and advocate for solutions.
Atlantic City’s NorStep is hosting a Citywide Charity Drive.
“Please visit one of these locations to drop off food or clothing so we can help those in need,” NorStep co-founder Stephen Weiss wrote on Facebook, with a growing list of businesses that have volunteered to be drop-off points.
The Natural Beauties Social Club of New Jersey will kick things off Saturday by feeding those in need at Brown’s Park in Atlantic City.
Beginning at 12:30 p.m., there will be sandwiches, soup, chips, juice and even some clothing.
Many restaurants have joined the call, especially focusing on the children who will be affected.
"No kid will go hungry on our 48 blocks," Tony's Baltimore Grill announced in a Facebook post Thursday, that seems to have ignited a movement.
“Inspired by a selfless gesture by Tony’s Baltimore Grill, the Varsity Inn will be following in their footsteps ensuring every child in our community has a nutritious meal available to them,” the Ocean City restaurant at 605 E. Eighth St. wrote on Facebook.
A kid’s menu item will be free at the Varsity Inn with “no strings attached, just present your SNAP card.”
“They’ve got the kids covered for pizza, and we’ve got them covered for breakfast,” the Sunrise Café wrote, also citing Tony’s.
Any kid accompanying a parent or guardian who shows a SNAP card while dining at the Sunrise Cafe location at1200 Asbury Ave. in Ocean City will eat free.
Students can eat free at Esperanza’s Kitchen in Pleasantville starting next week from 3 to 7 p.m. Monday through Friday.
All they need to do is show their school ID, “no questions asked,” the restaurant at 12 Old Turnpike Road writes on Instagram.
“Whatever food we have left over after 7 p.m. will be given out to the shelters and the homeless,” the business states.
Freddy J's Bar & Kitchen in Mays Landing also is offering free kids' meals, with a SNAP card.
When someone commented on their post asking about how parents on SNAP would afford to go out to take their children, the business replied: "We’re not asking anyone to buy anything. We even set up a fund to cover meals for parents and guardians. We just wanted to offer a warm meal without judgment. Our food doesn’t travel as easily as pizza, so this was simply our way of helping and giving people a moment to breathe and not worry about everything else going on."
Boondocks Market and Grill in Sweetwater vows that “no child will go hungry on our watch.”
They are offering unlimited free children’s meals to any child when a SNAP card is shown at the time of order.
Oceanside Family Success Center at 201 Melrose Ave. in Atlantic City is offering free to-go meals, with a menu for the week.
“We understand this is a challenging time for many families, and we are committed to helping as much as we can,” the center wrote.
There also are groups like Lasagna Love, where people in need can request a meal each month.
