New Orleans March CLARION HERALD Federal budget cuts could ax

8 New Orleans March 17, 2007 CLARION HERALD Federal budget cuts could ax Second Harvest programs By PETER FINNEY Jr. Before Hurricane Katrina, people with steady jobs and solid incomes never dreamed of having to resort to using food stamps, but they did so by the thousands in the chaotic weeks after the storm. Eighteen months after Katrina, poverty and hunger in south Louisiana continue to be vexing issues that are taxing the resources of the largest food bank in Louisiana, Second Harvest Food Bank of Greater New Orleans and Acadiana, a program of the Archdiocese of New Orleans. Since Katrina, thousands of previously middle-income families who never needed help putting food on the table are now searching for extra assistance because they have so many other financial concerns. They are the post-Katrina working poor, and Natalie Jayroe, president and CEO of Second Harvest, knows they have grown in number. “The only silver lining, from our perspective, is that everyone now understands we are all one crisis away from hunger and needing extraordinary assistance,” Jayroe said. “I have really found that reflected in the support we have received from the community.” Second Harvest provides food to more than 160 nonprofit and faithbased agencies throughout 23 parishes in Louisiana. In the 18 months since Hurricanes Rita and Katrina, the food bank has distributed more than 64 million pounds of food, and it is now distributing about 2 million pounds of food a month. “Frankly, we could do 4 million if we could put our hands on it,” Jayroe said. “Four million pounds would, in my estimation, meet the needs of the community.” But Second Harvest and other food banks around the country are facing another potential storm. A federal budget proposal for fiscal year 2008 by the Bush administration would NATALIE JAYROE, president of Second Harvest Food Bank, worries that proposed federal budget cuts will eliminate the Food For Families/Food For Seniors program that has been working so well to meet low-income individuals’ nutritional needs. (Photo by Peter Finney Jr.) Offering quality Escorted Tours And making your travel dreams come true since 1986 eliminate funding for the Commodity Supplemental Food Program (CSFP), which provides a box of nutritious food each month to nearly a halfmillion low-income seniors over the age of 60, and women with children under the age of 6 in 32 states. In the Archdiocese of New Orleans, that would mean the elimination of the Food For Families/Food For Seniors Program that provides a box of staples to a family each month. A similar proposal last year was beaten back by Congress, and the program was saved. There will have to be another lobbying effort in the next few weeks to keep the program intact. “Ninety-five percent of the people who receive this assistance are seniors who don’t have that much support,” Jayroe said. “The other 5 percent are families with children, which is also a very vulnerable population. What it amounts to is telling these people to go out and receive food stamps.” Jayroe said there are many problems with the proposal. Only two of 10 food stamp offices are even open in Orleans Parish. In order to be eligible for food stamps, a senior cannot live (Continued on next page) ESCORTED TOURS VOLUNTEERS offload a truck filled with food and water at the Pauline Street home of Pastor Ella O’Neal, right, who works with Second Harvest to distribute the food to needy neighbors through her faith-based ministry. (Photo by Frank J. Methe) 340-8747 – OUT-OF-TOWN – 800-542-8785 TRIPS UNLIMITED Marrero, LA • Visit our website at www.tripsunlimitedinc.com CLARION HERALD New Orleans March 17, 2007 9 Since Katrina, more people have needed food assistance (From preceding page) in a household whose combined total income exceeds 100 percent of the national poverty line related to household size. The senior’s assets cannot exceed $3,000. “If you own a car that’s worth more than $3,000, you’re not eligible for food stamps,” Jayroe said. Since Katrina, many seniors are living with extended family and therefore would not be eligible for food stamps because in many cases the combined household income limit would be exceeded, Jayroe said. “The poverty line numbers are abysmally low,” Jayroe said. “It’s something like $14,000 for a family of two. If anyone has a part-time job, that might eliminate them from the program. In our situation, where housing is scarce and families are living under the same roof, it becomes impossible for seniors to get food stamps. Technically, they wouldn’t be eligible.” The Food For Families/Food For Seniors program serves about 80,000 people in Louisiana. The hidden health cost of trying to move seniors to the food stamp program is that the box of food from Food For Seniors is nutritionally balanced, which allows seniors a better chance to deal with their specific wellness issues. Tim Robertson, director of Food For Families/Food For Seniors, said under the proposed federal budget, seniors who qualify for food stamps would receive $20 to $25 a month to buy food at retail grocery stores. “RIGHT NOW they are getting a box of food that has a retail value of $40 to $50,” Robertson said. “We are a supplemental commodity program. It’s scary how far a senior can stretch this food for the month. That’s why it’s almost a slap in the face to them. The government doesn’t realize how big a bang for the buck it is getting. A $40 to $50 box of food (provided by Food For Seniors) costs the USDA (U.S. Department of Agriculture) about $15 because they buy in bulk. I shouldn’t have to be beating the drums for this. This is a good use of federal money.” Jayroe said she is heartened by the support Second Harvest has received from local corporate and individual donors who have kept the food coming. Large grocery chains, national retailers, hotels and schools provide food, and Second Harvest sponsors a canned goods drive through the United States Postal Service. Volunteers in “gleaning projects” work during the late harvest season to bring in fresh fruit and vegetables. The USDA also provides food in bulk through the farm bill. Katrina severely damaged Second Harvest’s distribution network. About 75 percent of the nonprofit and faith-based organizations that distributed the Second Harvest food before Katrina “were gone overnight, which caused us to think about how we were going to distribute the food.” Jayroe said Second Harvest is back up to about one-third of its pre-Katrina distribution points. The food bank has added mobile pantries and added a program in schools in which low-income children are given colorful backpacks loaded with nutritious food to bring home. The Meals on Wheels program is coming back slowly. Jayroe would like to be able to track with some degree of precision the number of new clients Second Harvest is reaching. Such statistics would make a case for continued funding of critical initiatives. “WE ARE doing monthly surveys, and we’re seeing an increase in people, and that’s the best way to determine what poverty and hunger look like,” Jayroe said. “People have said, ‘Why is the need so great if all the poor people left town?’ That demonstrates a complete misunderstanding of the problem. I love to take those folks down to St. Bernard and Plaquemines parishes, where those communities have prided themselves on self-sufficiency and being fiercely independent. Those people would not come near the emergency system in the past, and they have to now.” Jayroe said many people outside of south Louisiana simply don’t understand the scope of the catastrophe represented by Katrina and Rita and the effects that will linger for years. “Unless you have been here you have no idea,” she said. “I think it’s a question of national leadership. People say Americans have short attention spans, but I don’t think that’s true. The nation’s leaders have to understand this was the worst natural disaster to hit this country.” Anyone interested in helping Second Harvest Food Bank with a donation or by volunteering can contact the agency at (504) 734-1322 or visit www.nohunger.org. Second Harvest is located at 1201 Sams Ave. in Elmwood. A $1 donation can be turned into a meal for a family of four. Volunteers are needed to repack food at the main warehouse. The next postal carriers’ drive will be in May. Persons can leave canned goods or nonperishable food at their mailboxes for pick up by their postal carrier. THE MONTHLY box of nutritious commodities from Second Harvest is a godsend to many families whose living expenses have skyrocketed since Hurricane Katrina. (Photo by Frank J. Methe)