East Cleveland News

Every day in Northeast Ohio, many of our neighbors face impossible choices: Do I eat or put gas in my car to get to work? Dinner or picking up my family's prescriptions at the pharmacy?

On March 1, the federal program providing emergency SNAP (Food Stamp) benefits expired with the ending of the pandemic era emergency programs. Sadly, things are about to get much worse and the choices much more difficult to make for the most food insecure among us, now that those additional SNAP benefits have expired. Most of the 42 million SNAP beneficiaries are members of a working family with children, a person with a severe disability or a senior citizen on fixed income. The loss of those extra dollars – assistance that kept many families in our region’s community from going hungry – equates to the loss of about 54 million meals nation-wide. Or for individual families, upwards of $95 less each month. Now, many of those same families are wondering how they'll close this gap.

This change means more people will be turning to the Food Bank and its network of 1,000+ program partners. We need to be ready to provide nutritious meals to every single person coming to the Cleveland Food Bank and its partners for help. Recently, our Police Chief and Lieutenant spent hours working in a driving rain at the downtown Muny Lot delivering food to needy people waiting in miles long car lines to receive a single carton of nutritious food. I appreciate their selfless donation of time and effort as it is so easy to politely acknowledge but ignore the desperate needs of people around us. For many of us we enter the picture by making a donation, large or small, to the Pepper Pike Virtual Food Drive. http://www.GreaterClevelandFoodBank.org/PepperPike

This year, as much as ever before, we hope that you will support the efforts of our employees by supporting the Pepper Pike virtual food drive for Harvest for Hunger. The Greater Cleveland Foodbank continues to see historic demand for its services. Over the years, through the generous support of our residents, Pepper Pike has raised many thousands of dollars by its “virtual drive”. We should be very proud of Pepper Pike’s support for the Food Bank. The Government aid which has and will be supplied does not at all satisfy this tremendous need. Your individual support is vital. The need for food is now as much and greater than ever before.

The wonderful support our drive had last year from many of you provides hope to make this year’s drive an even greater success! Your participation makes our drive successful by our opening up the online website and inviting you, the residents of Pepper Pike, to participate. We can make this a great community event by joining with our employees and assisting in this vital regional effort. www.GreaterClevelandFoodBank.org/PepperPike

Hunger afflicts needy individuals and families, the aged, young, poor and sick. It exists throughout all communities. The question is, how will we all help to address it? Your generosity makes the difference between people going hungry or having nutritious meals. The need is great; success depends on all of us.

Harvest for Hunger is one of the largest food and fund drives in the United States. It serves a critical need! And remember, amazingly, $1 helps to provide three nutritious meals! More than 40% of the people served are children and seniors. Many are hardworking but low-income households. 64% of the assisted households must choose between paying for food or utilities and 62% choose between paying for food or medicine. www.GreaterClevelandFoodBank.org/PepperPike

This is a voluntary program for you to participate in by visiting www.GreaterClevelandFoodBank.org/PepperPike to make a donation. You can participate anonymously or you can list your name, and for whatever amount you deem appropriate. There is no reward for participating or penalty for not, other than your knowing you have helped out others in direct need and that you are doing the right thing, likely the best thing you will do today.

Original source can be found here.