Hunger Is Not a Disease

Motel 19

March 28, 2018 at 7:36 pm

Everyone coming to a pantry travels down a path.  For many, this journey is a real load lightener.  As the finances erode, the house goes.  And, of course, when the house goes, everything that was in it goes too.

Furniture, kitchen stuff, toys, clothes, tools, garden implements.  By the time a person or family gets to Motel 19, things have slimmed down to a few clothes, a blanket or two, a hot plate, or maybe an electric skillet or microwave.

For the families living in Model 19, the children are usually eligible for the school breakfast and/or lunch program.  But, that doesn’t cover eating at home.  And, there’s no lunch program for the adults.

So…it’s off to the pantry.

Several families usually pile in a car and come over for an afternoon of pantry shopping.  Or, an individual hitch hikes.  In order for this trip to succeed, several guidelines to follow will help:

Try to arrive an hour or so before the pantry opens.  This makes for a long wait but there’s more of a selection right when the pantry opens.  Also, while waiting in line, there’s an opportunity to make new friends and learn a few survival skills if you’re new to the pantry experience.

Bring your own shopping bags.  Some pantries don’t have enough of these much needed items.

Bring some ID.  Some pantries require much:  picture ID, proof of address, proof that other household members exist.  This can be a bit tough if you’re homeless.  Hint:  some pantries require little to no identification

Be prepared to wait in a line.  Use this time to meet your line neighbors.  They can be helpful if you’re trying to navigate your way through DSS, if you’re being foreclosed upon, need your car repaired, etc.

As you wait in line, try to learn how the pantry works from those around you in the line.  You’ll want to know how long you’ll be in the shopping room, what foods are usually on the shelves, what other pantries the people in line shop at, etc.

Don’t be afraid to let people know you’ve never been to a pantry.

Once you find a pantry you can use, go every time you’re allowed.  If you’re lucky, you’ll have a pantry in your area which will allow weekly visits.  Because pantry shopping takes so much time, shoppers sometimes just don’t go if they still have SNAP card money or if they have a few bucks left over from a paycheck.  Your best bet is to go every week.

Why?  Most pantries have different food every week and you may miss out on some real savings by not attending regularly.

Pantry shopping requires a totally new approach to cooking.  So does cooking with only an electric skillet or microwave.

Some pantries have periodic visits from a nutritionist.  Don’t be shy about asking him/her for any tips you might need to help this adjustment a bit easier for you.  Nutritionists  know a lot about the food you are now trying to cook with and they can answer any questions you might have.

Thanks for reading this blog post.

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PS:  This book is at the publisher’s now.  It will be available SOON!  You can order it at http://www.thurmangreco.com.

Thanks,

Thurman Greco

Starving Seniors?

February 27, 2018 at 1:17 am

 

Starving seniors?  Is that too harsh a word?

Let’s ratchet it down:  hungry.

Or, maybe:  food insecure.  Yeah, that’s better.  It sounds better anyway.

Call it what you want, the event is the same.  It’s your grandmother or grandfather (or me…I’m certainly a grandmother) caught in a situation where there’s simply not enough food in the house.

Seniors living on Social Security are finding themselves routinely choose between food and medicine, food and transportation.  When they need new clothes, seniors regularly shop at the boutique of the closet.

The issues with seniors and food insecurity are serious because when seniors no longer have the money to buy the food they need for proper nutrition or why they can no longer buy the medicines they need, they become ill and finally end up being cared for by their children or they end up in a nursing home.

I know many stories about:

The older woman in Woodstock living on mashed potatoes.

The older woman in Bearsville who ended up in a nursing home when she was cut off from her pantry take out food and didn’t have the resources or physical ability to get to a grocery store.

The older man who doesn’t have enough money for food and is slowly starving to death.

There is food available for all these people

if they can get to a pantry

if they can connect with a pantry offering take out food

if they can sign up for SNAP (food stamps).

I recently spoke with a retired friend.  “Richard, do you get SNAP?”

“No.”

“Why Richard?  SNAP is usually easy to get.  All you have to do is apply.”

“Well, I’m getting by without it.  Let someone else, needier than me, get the money.”

“Richard, think about getting SNAP.  This is something you paid for with your taxes.  Why leave money on the table?”

I haven’t convinced him yet.  However, we’re not through negotiating.  As seniors, we’re in a situation where every little bit helps.

The barriers to SNAP for seniors are great.  Seniors resist going to a pantry, soup kitchen, getting SNAP until they simply can’t resist any longer.  I know the feeling.  We grew up as children and went into adulthood feeling that if we worked hard and paid our taxes, we would end up okay.  We worked all our lives believing this.  And now, there simply isn’t enough.

With this event comes feelings of inadequacy and self blame.  “I must have done something wrong.  Here I am living hand-to-mouth.  I don’t even have enough money for food.  What did I do wrong?”

I don’t like a whole generation of people blaming themselves.  I feel we’re not totally to blame.  The rules have changed.  Because we’re retired, we’re not     in the rules making game anymore.  Retirees are somewhat disempowered.  Whatever happened to the Grey Panthers?

Thank you for reading this article!

Please refer it to your preferred social media network.

The new memoir about hunger in America will soon be available!  I’ll keep you in the loop.

Thanks again for your support!

Thurman Greco

 

The Pantry

February 4, 2018 at 12:44 am

Lord, thank You for the food pantry where I work.

And, Lord, thank You for the shoppers and volunteers I’ve come to know through our work here.

I ask You Lord, have patience as we learn to pray for one another and care for one another.  Our pantry work is a glorification of Your name as You work miracles in our midst.  Thank You for the difference You make in all our lives.

Lord, You teach us much in this pantry.  For starters, You’ve taught us that the hungry shall be fed – no matter what – no matter why – no matter who.

We experience what it means to be new as we learn what it’s like to work with, accept, and feel welcome – both the worthy and the unworthy.

We’re learning that we’re all Your people.  We are all accepted.  We are all holy.  We are all worthy.  The pantry is faith in action.

Amen

Thank you for reading this article!

Please share this post with your preferred social media network.

Thank you.

Thurman Greco