Valley leaders donate to food bank as SNAP pause looms

FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) – Central Valley leaders gathered astatine the Central California Food Bank Monday to manus implicit immoderate elephantine checks.

Assemblywoman Esmeralda Soria partnered with the Alliance of California Farmers and Ranchers Community Fund, the Valley Children’s Hospital Foundation, and Fresno United to donate $15,000 to the nutrient bank.

This comes arsenic the authorities shutdown approaches its 27th time Tuesday, and nutrient banks crossed the state brace for accrued demand.

“The ongoing national authorities shutdown is creating existent fearfulness and uncertainty for families,” Soria said.

“It is estimated that 25% of our kids spell bare each and each day, and that could beryllium further exacerbated by the existent national shutdown and the imaginable disruption of SNAP and CalFresh benefits,” William Chaltraw with Valley Children’s said.

The California Department of Social Services says those benefits volition intermission Nov. 1.

Natalie Caples with the Central California Food Bank says that means the 320,000 radical they already service each period could rapidly increase.

“For each 1 repast that Central California Food Bank provides to our section community, SNAP provides 9 meals,” Caples said.

Caples says the 5 counties they service trust connected $138 cardinal successful SNAP benefits each month, and they cannot capable that spread without help.

“We person a assemblage that is perfectly truthful generous. When the request arises, they measurement up and conscionable the need. And we are so, truthful thankful for that,” Caples said.

$15,000 volition lone spell truthful far, truthful Soria urges others to step up and donate as well.

“Together, we tin marque definite that nary child, nary family, nary senior, nary moving idiosyncratic goes hungry,” Soria said.