WAYNE, Mich. (WXYZ) — SNAP benefit delays are forcing more families across metro Detroit to rely on food banks, with some pantries reporting double the usual demand as the holidays approach.
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At St. Mary's Community Outreach Center in Wayne, volunteers say more people are showing up every day just to put food on the table. The delays in the country's Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, which supports more than a million residents across metro Detroit, are leaving food banks to pick up the slack.
For families like Mary McClendon's, the delay in SNAP benefits isn't just inconvenient, it's frightening.
"I'm a diabetic. There's certain stuff I have to have, and now that they're cutting it off, I don't. How I'm going to get it, vegetables and stuff. This is really depressing," McClendon said.
List: Food resources in metro Detroit as pause in SNAP funding expected
Malynda Garcia, director of St. Mary's Community Outreach Center, said demand has surged dramatically.
"We just pulled our numbers for this time last year and we're already over double of what we've seen for the month of October," Garcia said.
Others like Tiara Mott are trying to plan ahead, especially with the holidays coming up.
"Thanksgiving's coming up, so I'm trying to figure out what all I need for Thanksgiving or how much money I'm gonna have to spend," Mott said. "I have five kids, so that's gonna be like a lot for me."
Local businesses are also stepping up to help, including John Goci, owner of Mike and Mona's US 12.
"Having grown up in this area, you know, we grew up poor, so I think when you grow up poor, when you do have a little bit, you give back a lot more. So we want to help our neighbors in need and make sure that they have food on the table," Goci said.
But even as donations come in, Garcia says the pantry is having to stretch what they have.
"We're still here Monday through Friday. We just give out less food than we normally do. We really don't want to, but we're gonna have to make it stretch," Garcia said.
Even as the shelves thin, St. Mary's says they will continue to show up for every family that walks through their doors.
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