For the past several weeks, Jewish Family Service has been ramping up its food distribution services to meet a growing need in the community since the government shutdown started last month.
“Thank God I got my EBT in when it was supposed to come in, and I’m going to go do some shopping,” Marty Roks, who is a EBT recipient said.
Marty Roks is among the 400,000 San Diegans who rely on SNAP benefits to put food on her table and who went a week without the benefits before they were restored.
For Marty who’s 83, the thought of not receiving her EBT benefits is unfathomable.
“I would starve to death,” she said.
She said the benefits she receives from the federally funded program are not enough.
That’s why, since the government shutdown last month, she’s turned to other community resources for help, like the Jewish Family Service Food Distribution Drive Thru.
She’s not alone.
Tom Stewart with Jewish Family Service said since they started the Emergency Response Food Distribution Drive five weeks ago, they’ve seen a 30 to 40 percent increase in San Diegans using their food distribution resources.
“One gentleman, shared that he’s a 30 year employee of the government and had planned on retiring in December and he’s found that this is the very first time in his life that he’s ever had to ask for help because he’s missed a couple paychecks now,” Tom Stewart said.
Stewart said people who work on military bases are also struggling.
“The anxiety of not knowing and feeling like they’re being pulled the tug of adding benefits, taking away benefits, there’s just so much uncertainty right now that it’s really those families that are feeling it the most,” Stewart said.
Pedro Hernandez is also frustrated about the effects the shutdown is having on people’s lives, including people he knows personally.
“You’re messing with people’s livelihoods and they’re lives just because you want their way and they want their way, it’s like you got voted in to do a job. Do your job and do what your people want,” Pedro Herandez said.
A job that’s not being done for now, leaving Marty’s livelihood at the mercy of lawmakers.
“The food bank and my EBT is what I live on basically,” Roks said.
According to Jewish Family Service, more than 13,000 meals have been distributed.
Today they prepared meals for about 200 households.
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