| Releases
& Statements
**FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE**
August 5, 2009
Gia Storms
(212) 669-4813; (917) 626-6757
Gotbaum Visits Food Pantry Experiencing Spike in Need; Calls on City to Help Hungry New Yorkers
STATEN ISLAND -- Public Advocate Gotbaum today called on the city to maintain current emergency food programming when she visited Richmond Senior Services, a Staten Island food pantry. In the past nine months, Richmond Senior Services has seen a great increase in demand as the economy continues to decline and nearly faced closure due to lack of resources. Public Advocate Gotbaum was joined by emergency food providers and anti-hunger advocates, urging the city to increase funding for emergency food programs and support policies – like an increase in food stamps access – to fight hunger in the city.
In the New York City Coalition Against Hunger’s (NYCCAH) Annual Hunger Survey, 68.6 percent of emergency food agencies in 2008 – up from 59 percent in 2007 – reported that they did not have enough food to fulfill demand. The Coalition’s full survey report, entitled: No Bailout for the Hungry: Funding Slashed to Emergency Food Providers as Hunger in NYC Continues to Soar, is available at www.nyccah.org.
Today, Richmond Senior Services now serves 25 percent more people than they did in November 2008, at an average of 800 people per month. The need peaked in June with 850 people, and there are now 20 new families each week that require their services.
Public Advocate Betsy Gotbaum said, “As the number of unemployed in New York City continues to grow, the city should not turn their back on hungry New Yorkers. Not only do food stamps act as a needed lifeline for New Yorkers trying to feed their families, but they also serve to boost our city’s local economy. And making it easier for New Yorkers to access food stamps could eliminate some of the demand for pantries. Food pantries like this one are a lifeline even in the best of times, and now more than ever we should do all we can to expand food assistance services.”
Beverly Neuhaus, Executive Director of Richmond Senior Services, said, “It wasn’t great before, but it’s really worse now. Summer is always slow because food and other supplies are lower. As a result, I’ve had to cut two out of three staff because I can’t keep them on if I have no way to pay them. We can’t continue to meet the demand with this many people and these few supplies – the food is gone as soon as it goes on the shelves.”
Joel Berg, Executive Director of the New York City Coalition Against Hunger, said, “The bad news is that we have more agencies than ever running out of food. People think about hunger during the holidays, but hunger is a year-long problem that we must continue to address. The good news is that President Obama and Congress have a great opportunity to rapidly reverse these trends by strengthening the nutrition safety net and creating living wage jobs.”
To cope with minimal resources and a shrinking budget, Richmond Senior Services received an emergency grant from the Staten Island Foundation to cover costs for the next few months, but reports that future funding looks “grim.”
While support for emergency food providers such as Richmond Social Services is critical, changes in government policy to enforce living wages and increased access to government services such as food stamps are long-term solutions towards ending hunger. Initiatives such as requiring finger imaging for food stamp applicants prevent many potential applicants from seeking assistance.
According to Neuhaus, “We all need to be aware of this program and take action. It would help if people wrote and called their elected officials to improve policies and that people who have the means to do so should donate to support programs like this.”
###
|
