CINCINNATI — Jeffrey Davis has already lost weight in the past two years, but he said without meals delivered to him weekly he's sure he'd be down even more.
"This shirt used to fit me tight, so I'm losing a lot of weight," said Davis. "It is helping quite a bit."
Two years ago, his wife was diagnosed with dementia at just 60 years old and Davis had to take her to live in a facility. Since then, he's had to rely on Meals on Wheels.
"I miss my wife's cooking, you know," said Davis. "She was the one in the kitchen and now I've got to do this here."
As the cost of food has risen starkly since the COVID-19 pandemic, Davis said he most heavily relies on Meals on Wheels to bring him fresh vegetables.
Sarah Celenza, chief giving officer for Meals on Wheels, said the demand from seniors served by the Southwest Ohio and Northern Kentucky branch has gone up this year. The number of meals served by Meals on Wheels has risen nearly 20% since February, Celenza said.
At Freestore Foodbank, the largest food pantry and emergency food provider in the region, the demand has also risen sharply.
The end of COVID-era SNAP benefits
Kam McKenzie, SNAP outreach manager for the food bank, said the Liberty Street pantry is seeing 940 more families per month since the end of February, when COVID-era SNAP benefits were halted.
"So now we're averaging maybe a little over 300 families a day coming into our Liberty Street pantry to shop for groceries," said McKenzie.
Based on the amount of food given out by Freestore, she estimated the demand on the pantry is up 27% compared to June of 2022.
Households in Ohio received emergency allotments in Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) payments from March 2020 through the end of February 2023, through the Families First Coronavirus Response Act.
Pre-pandemic, a household of three people would have received $180 a month in SNAP aid — but with the emergency allotment in place, that same family was receiving $740 per month for the last three years.
In Hamilton County, commissioners said the change affected more than 52,000 families.
Many of those families have turned to Freestore Foodbank to bridge the gap.
"We're starting to see lines outside of our door before we open in the mornings," said McKenzie. "We haven't seen that for awhile outside of holiday distributions."
And among those in line are new faces, McKenzie said.
"So, at our pantry you can come twice a month to shop and for the most part it had been the same families kind of circulating in and out, but what we've seen the last few months is just people who have never utilized our services are coming in to shop at our Liberty Street market," McKenzie said.
Some of those new faces are also seniors who hadn't relied on Freestore in the past, she said. Seniors on a fixed income were receiving $281 per month under the COVID-era SNAP benefits, but now those payments are back down to $23 per month.
"If you look at the price of food, inflation, on top of the reduction of SNAP benefits, that's one of the other reasons why maybe they weren't utilizing our pantries even before COVID, because of the price of food," said McKenzie. "But now we all have felt and seen what that food cost increase has done and so that is also driving them into our pantries."
Freestore Foodbank isn't alone.
Lisa Hamler-Fugitt, executive director of the Ohio Association of Foodbanks, told the Ohio Capital Journal in April that the end of COVID-era enhancements to SNAP has driven seniors to rely on food pantries across the state.
“They’re the canaries in the hunger coal mine,” she told the Ohio Capital Journal. “When they join the food line, they’re not leaving until they go into the nursing home or they pass away.”
The skyrocketing cost of food
As more Meals on Wheels deliveries are driven to doorsteps of seniors in the region, Celenza said she can't be certain the SNAP benefit change has affected their clients, because many Meals on Wheels recipients don't use the service.
But they have felt the rising cost of food.
"There's a myth that seniors only get a very small amount of SNAP benefits and it's not really worth it to most seniors, but that's not true," said Celenza. "A lot of seniors actually qualify for a fair amount of support. And there are also programs like Produce Perks, which actually double their benefit if they use the dollars on fresh produce at participating groceries, which can stretch that dollar so much further."
Davis said he hadn't relied on SNAP before turning to Meals on Wheels, and neither had Barbara Coffelt, who began having meals delivered to her after she was in a traumatic car crash.
"They ran into me, I was driving," said Coffelt, who was in a neck brace. "So I couldn't get out, you know, to get anything."
Coffelt's neck was broken in the crash, she said, and her recovery has been a slow process. She was approved for temporary meal delivery that she said was set to expire six months after she enrolled in May, but added she greatly needs the deliveries to continue.
The seven meals she gets delivered to her home each week — one meal per day — and the extra staples like vegetables, milk and bread, have been keeping her going, she said.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor's consumer price index for July, the cost of food at home has increased 3.6% over July 2022.
Finding Solutions
During the interview with Coffelt, Celenza provided her with contact information for the people she needed to speak with to renew her meal deliveries.
"Our drivers check in with their people and they know if something's off or something's not right, and they're able to help that person call a loved one or they're able to check back with that person's case manager and get them the help they need," said Celenza. "Or like the situation today where Miss Barbara was worried ... we were able to have that conversation with her and make sure that she's advocating for herself to say 'no, I'm still in a situation where because of my injury, I'm not driving and I still need this help.'"
In direct response to the end of COVID-era SNAP benefits, Hamilton County commissioners also immediately acted. In January, before the additional benefits ended, commissioners voted to redirect funds from the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) to the Freestore Foodbank in anticipation.
"It is helping — of course, anything extra will help," said McKenzie. "What we've done is we were able to amp up our volunteers as well, because they actually help us to run our markets."
For people in the Greater Cincinnati region relying on food pantries or other organizations like Meals on Wheels, there are avenues that can help ease the burden.
Both Meals on Wheels and Freestore Foodbank have experts available to help enroll seniors and anyone else who may qualify in the SNAP program.
"Our social work team can work with seniors and help them get enrolled," said Celenza. "Also, our partners at the Council on Aging in the Northern Kentucky Area Development District can help get seniors enrolled."
For families already using SNAP who still struggle to make ends meet, there are other services available.
Hamilton County's rent and utility payment aid program returned in November 2022 and is still accepting applications. As part of this program, the county will pay for up to 15 months of rent — 12 past-due payments and three future payments — and utilities for eligible renters who have experienced a financial impact as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Hamilton County residents can apply to the program online.
There is also a mortgage and utility assistance program funded by the State of Ohio for residents who own their homes and still need help. That program, called Save the Dream, helps to pay delinquent mortgage payments and/or future mortgage payments for up to six months.
Here's a list of available food assistance resources in the Greater Cincinnati region, several of which offer some forms of immediate help:
Freestore Foodbank:
The Freestore Foodbank, in partnership with several different localized food pantries and food assistance programs, has several upcoming food distribution events listed on their website.
Community Action Agency's mobile food pantry:
In partnership with the Freestore Foodbank and other local organizations, the Community Action Agency has a mobile food pantry to help provide fresh fruits and vegetables for families. The organization has several upcoming stops in the coming months.
The National Hunger Hotline:
The National Hunger Hotline is a national service that can help families find food available near where they live. Residents can call the hotline at 1.866.348.6479 or visit their website.
United Way's 211 Program:
Residents in Hamilton County aren't the only ones who can access the 211 help line; the United Way also reaches Adams, Brown, Clermont, Boone, Kenton, Campbell and Grant counties. Residents can call 211 to access a variety of services from the United Way. The line is staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week year-round. A text message option is also available — residents just text 211CARES to 51555. The program also has an online database so residents can search for the resources they need themselves, if desired.
This program also provides access to resources that will help with other needs, like payment for utilities, non-food necessities like diapers and cleaning supplies, health care services and more.
The 513 Relief Bus:
The bus has several upcoming stops in Greater Cincinnati communities, beginning with a stop in Westwood on Wednesday. You can check out their list of upcoming stops on their website.
Hamilton County Job & Family Services:
This is not an immediate solution to food insecurity, but families who are not already enrolled in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program can apply for it through the Hamilton County Job & Family Services department. Residents can apply online or call 1.844.640.6446.
Meals on Wheels of Southwest Ohio & Northern Kentucky
Specifically aimed at seniors in need of consistent food access, Meals on Wheels delivers food to seniors' homes. They also offer transportation services to health care appointments and independent living assistance for any seniors who may need help managing feeding pets, paying bills, scheduling appointments and more.
To determine if you're eligible for the program, residents in Hamilton and Butler counties can contact the Greater Cincinnati location at 513.721.1025 or 800.252.0155. Kentucky residents can contact the Northern Kentucky location at 859.283.1885.
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