The holiday season is upon us but for many the most wonderful time of the year comes with a heavy financial burden.
ABC News reports that food pantries continue to see larger crowds than usual utilizing their programs even after the restoration of SNAP benefits. This trend is expected to remain throughout the Holiday season.
Even local food banks noted the larger communities they’ve been providing aid, when reached out.
Sheila Kozina is a representative for a local church’s food assistance program here in Stockton she noted that her program unfortunately couldn’t take many more members as they’ve already seen a large surge of need gradually over the year.
“We used to serve about 60 families a week, now we serve 105 to 150,” said Kozina.
Though she noted some of these families that join their program aren’t consistent, the organization was still “scrambling to get bags together” during the previous week of Thanksgiving.
Food insecurity is a growing issue and no one should ever spend the Holiday season without food. Below are a few places who will be serving the community this season.
When contacted, Second Harvest food Bank in Manteca stated they would be partaking in Mobile Fresh. The program provides 25-pound bags of food to patrons at various sites, including Delta College, during the year. This service is on a first come first serve basis and doesn’t require any form of reservation. Organizers advise getting to giveaway sites a bit early, but no more than two hours before the start time.
Mobile Fresh events moving on towards Christmas Eve
- Dec. 17, 9 to 10 a.m. – St. Frances of Rome (2827 Topeka St., Riverbank)
- Dec. 18, 9 to 10 a.m. – Merlo Gym (2044 Fair St., Stockton)
- Dec. 19, 9 to 10 a.m. – Calvary Church (815 W. Lathrop Rd., Manteca)
- 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. – Cornerstone Church (10948 South Airport Way, Manteca)
- Dec. 22, 9 to 10 a.m. – Valley SDA (2929 S. B St., Stockton)
- St. Mary’s (1225 Olive St., Oakdale)
- Dec. 23, 9 to 10 a.m. – Community Partnership (100 E. Pine St., Lodi)
Along with its Mobile Fresh event, Calvary Church will be hosting a coat drive on Dec. 7 from 9 to 10:45 a.m.
Greater Faith Missionary, located at 345 W. Worth St. in Stockton, 95206, will host an event on Dec. 20 where it will distribute meals, as well as toiletries and toys to the community. Though the event begins at 2 p.m., it is advised to arrive earlier as previous years have yielded people lining up at 10 a.m.
The Stockton segment of Catholic Charities has a small scale food bank that takes on site appointment-based food distributions the last Wednesday of every month. The organization does not check income, but does require appointments for onsite pickups as it collects data in order to continue programs. Catholic Charities often have off site distributions that are first come, first serve. For more information about these distributions, contact (209) 444-5900. Catholic Charities will offer a two-day event closer to holidays to distribute holiday groceries, though those days are not yet set.
Anna Guzman, a representative for Catholic Charities, wanted to ensure that the public was aware of the Advocacy programs the organization offers.
“And something that I also wanted to add was that anyone that’s not receiving Calfresh benefits or have any questions regarding Calfresh benefits because… they are already receiving benefits. You can call us and we can support them and advocate for them. If they have any questions or they need additional help with reporting requirements,” Guzman said.
This holiday season, you are not alone. These are just some of the many programs available to help you or your loved ones this holiday season. If you wish to seek further information, visit Food Pantry Referrals & Food Programs.
