Blocking & tackling: the working food-challenged

This month I want to tell you Martha’s story. She lives in Northern Hamilton County, works full-time, and is a single mom trying to provide for her kids and herself. The problem is when Martha has any unplanned sizable expense, she becomes part of the working poor in Hamilton County.

According to the Census, the ACS-1 survey reports that the median household income for Hamilton County in 2022 was $114,866, $56,943 in per capita income and 4.5 percent of our neighbors live in poverty. By most standards Hamilton County doesn’t have a large population living in poverty. In addition to an increasing number of people in our transient and homeless populations, we see more neighbors that float in and then out of pantry use. These are likely our neighbors, like Martha, who float in and out of being considered working poor. They may have stretched things too thin and often don’t know where to turn when food is scarce. These families traditionally earn too much income to qualify for public assistance and don’t know where to go to get help either.

Feeding Team targets pantry locations accessible to “Gap Families,” who, just like Martha, have very little experience getting help when the need arises. They need a few meals to get by before their next payday.

Martha’s situation is not unique. She walks a monthly financial tightrope and when something goes wrong, she needs help to get by. Martha is like most people; she so desperately wants to do things on her own. Martha hid her food insecurity from coworkers, family, and friends until she couldn’t hide it anymore. Once her parents found out that she was feeding her family from the pantries, they immediately jumped in to help, but Martha refused. That’s how we learned her story and it’s how we usually hear about pantry use, from a friend, a volunteer or from a family member.

Feeding Team’s mission is to have food available for hungry neighbors whenever they might need a meal. Admittedly, it’s a difficult lofty goal to achieve. But then you hear about the Marthas of the world, the impact that a few meals have had on her and her kids’ lives, and we are filled with the feeling of quiet satisfaction. We can never meet the entirety of the needs, but, like the kid throwing the starfish back in the ocean, we helped one.

If you find yourself in need – maybe occasionally you are, like I was, a member of the working poor – then Feeding Team Pantry’s are especially for you. They are here for you, 24/7/365. They are completely anonymous – no shame and no guilt. We take no information and have no expectations of you other than you merely take only what you need please. Leave food for others who are also in need.

Some future day, we hope that you consider giving what food you can and sharing your blessings with others that could use some help.

The Feeding Team launched pantry 71 in Whitestown recently, and with locations 72, 73, and 74 already secured, these pantries will be deployed in the coming weeks. We are grateful for the support of our community, volunteers, sponsors, and donors. Thank you.

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With over 40,000 food-challenged neighbors in Hamilton County, FeedingTeam.org is a registered 501(c)(3) not-for-profit organization that provides outdoor 24/7/365 no-questions-asked free food pantries throughout the county.

The pantries exist to meet the food insecurity needs of gap families, neighbors who may not qualify for public assistance and could use a few meals before payday. The pantries serve as many food-challenged neighbors as possible, and our hearts are with those who, like my family, could not always make ends meet.

Thank you for supporting the pantries. We love serving with so many neighbors across Hamilton County. In future columns, we will share more stories about how your generosity served neighbors in times of need. The face of hunger in Hamilton County is not what you may think.

In practical terms, this straightforward way to help neighbors is having real impact on lives, families, and our communities. Thank you. A few meals can change the course of a person’s life. A can of green beans means so much more when you have nothing to feed your kids.

Would you like to get involved? Volunteer opportunities are available. We are evaluating new pantry locations. If you think you have a potential location, please contact us.

Mark and Lisa Hall are the Founders of Feeding Team. They may be reached at lisa@feedingteam.org and mark@feedingteam.org or by calling (317) 832-1123.