GOAL: Community members have access to food.
SUCCESS STORY
Karlie is no stranger to hard work. In fact, she works more than 60 hours a week as a restaurant manager, and with five young children, she’s a busy mom. She and her partner both work, but even with two incomes, Karlie says it’s hard to afford enough food for her family of seven with the high cost of groceries. When the pandemic-era SNAP benefits expired last year, their food assistance went from $1,100 a month to $33. Without that extra assistance, it’s hard to stretch their household budget to afford everything they need — and pay for all their monthly expenses, too.
Thankfully, Karlie is able to get the extra food she needs for her family from FOCUS Food Pantry in Wisconsin Rapids. Without it, she says: “We’d be pinching pennies. Me and my significant other would probably choose not to eat in order to have enough for the kids.”
Recently, Karlie and her 9-year-old son, Bently, were picking out groceries together. Bently was especially excited for the baked beans. Karlie was happy to stock up on pantry staples that would keep her growing kids happy and well-fed.
“There’s pasta, pasta sauce, tuna, beans, snacks,” she says. She’s also thankful to find the fresh produce, meat, milk, and eggs that are often so expensive in the grocery store.
“They’re so kind to my kids, too. My kids love them every time I bring them here,” Karlie says. And with school break coming up, being able to come to the FOCUS Food Pantry each month will help fill the gap for families like Karlie’s while they can’t access free school meals.
“They’re always so kind, and they don’t make you feel bad for needing help, and I love that,” Karlie says. “They are amazing.”
LOCAL RESULTS
- Many ALICE households,despite struggling financially, do not qualify for FoodShare benefits due to their income.
- United Way’s investment in partner programs means food programs in south Wood and Adams Counties have the resources and support to help ALICE families in times of need.
- In 2023, partner programs & Hunger Coalition partners provided community members access to food over 61,000 times.
- Nearly 1/3 of financially struggling households report not having enough food for their children to eat.
- United Way helps ALICE families keep food on the table by investing in backpack programs which provide families with ingredients for weekend meals.
- 1,128 families received weekend meals through backpack meal programs in 2023.
- 6,347 pounds of food were donated to local food programs from United We Can in 2024.
- 8,830 individuals received access to food from Adams County partner programs in 2023.
- Over 22,925 pounds of food was provided to seniors with financial need through the Stockboxes program in 2023.
- Over 100 volunteers made an impact through Stockboxes, United We Can, and the Hunger Coalition in 2023.
Source: Hunger Coalition, Hunger Coalition, UWSWAC Partner Program
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