CHARLOTTE, N.C. (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — Nonprofits fighting food insecurity are hard at work around the Queen City, preparing for what is one of their busiest times of the year: Thanksgiving.
The team at Loaves and Fishes are on pace to have a record-breaking year, and it’s not the kind of record they want to break.
“The next eight days for my staff team, it will be absolutely nonstop,” said Loaves and Fishes CEO Tina Postel. “Last year, we served 106,000 people through the entire year. At the end of October, we’ve already served 112,000 individuals.”
Postel says she believes the end of COVID relief benefits has a lot to do with the increase of families in need.
“Extra SNAP dollars stopped. Childcare tax credits, the credit expired. And the cost of living has increased. It is not just a double whammy but a triple whammy for hardworking families,” she said.
Loaves and Fishes has ordered 3,000 turkeys for this year’s holiday. They expect to hand those out over the next week.
Every day, employees and volunteers witness the pure emotion of the families in need.
“This lady came through. She was already crying. She looked like she was going through it. She has no family here. She’s from St. Louis. She said that she just lost her job,” said Warehouse Assistant Brosnan Granger.
While they’ve never had to turn anyone away from a meal, they’re asking the community to help donate food staples. With the high demand, they blew their budget during the last fiscal year and are trying to avoid financial issues in the future.
“In the last fiscal year, we spent over $780,000 purchasing food. A typical year, we might spend $400,000 or $500,000,” said Postel.
For details about donating food items or volunteering with Loaves and Fishes, click here.
