Groups see that among suburban residents, more are hungry

On a recent Thursday, dozens of families crowded into a Naperville warehouse and took a number. Those who could find a seat did so, while others stood waiting in a hallway or spilled out the front door.

Volunteers worked quickly to assemble packages of canned goods and boxed foods as numbers were called. But for every outgoing package, there was another waiting to be filled.

"Without this organization, most of us would be out on the street," said Patty, a 48-year-old Naperville resident who asked her last name be withheld. "We all would be in trouble."

Here at the Loaves and Fishes Community Pantry, more than 1,000 new families sought assistance this year, marking a 55 percent increase over last year. More than 1.75 million pounds of food have gone out its doors. Volunteers say it's like nothing they've seen: Middle-class families who lost their homes, professionals who lost their jobs, single parents and seniors on the verge of homelessness.

They're among the estimated 49 million people nationwide who don't get enough to eat, according to the latest study from the federal government.

"We continue to add at least a hundred new families a month," Executive Director Charles McLimans said.

For Patty, a single mother who said she lost a job "making excellent money" two years ago, getting food from Loaves and Fishes means she can set aside money from her part-time job for bills and other living expenses until she finds full-time employment. It's a situation Patty said she never expected to be in, but one that can happen to anybody.

"I've helped start food pantries," she said, "so it's different to be on the other end of the spectrum. A lot of people won't go because they're ashamed. I'm grateful. They treat you like a million dollars when you don't feel like one dollar."

Maria, 47, also of Naperville, said she's relied on food pantries to feed herself and her 17-year-old son since he was born. Despite working several part-time jobs over the years, Maria said she continues to struggle and counted on Loaves and Fishes to provide a Thanksgiving meal again this year.

"It's a blessing," she said. "They helped me when I lost my job, when my car broke down. I've seen them help a lot of people."

Their stories are all too common.

The numbers

Last week, the U.S. Department of Agriculture released its 14th annual "Household Food Security in the United States" report. It's based on data collected in December 2008 by the U.S. Census Bureau.

The number of people deemed to be "food insecure" is at the highest since they began measuring in 1995 - and it took its biggest leap from December 2007 to December 2008. The government estimates 14.6 percent of the population fell in that category in 2008, up from 11.1 percent in 2007.

A person is "food secure" when they have access at all times to enough food to sustain an active, healthy life, according to the USDA.

And the numbers may be low, the USDA says, for two reasons: They do not include homeless people who aren't in shelters, and some parents are reluctant to report inadequate food intake for their children even when it has occurred, the USDA reports.

Not to mention that the economy got worse in 2009, with layoffs and pay cuts increasing.

But local food pantries and soup kitchens didn't need a government report to tell them that more people are hurting.

In Huntley, Faith Community Church recognized a new level of need this year and opened an emergency food pantry in September.

So far, the pantry has assisted more than 100 people a week and, earlier this month, handed out food to 280 people in one three-hour period, volunteer Renee Steel said.

"We're brand new, so we don't have anything to compare it to," Steel said. "But we are busy every week, and we do get a lot of new clients every week."

Much of the clientele, she said, are people who "never thought they would be in this situation.

"They say when they get out of it, they'll pay back and help the food pantry," Steel said. "Our people are very thankful, very grateful."

School nurses see the effects of hunger and malnutrition. Students come in their offices complaining of stomachaches and headaches, said Cameron Traut, a nurse at Libertyville High School and president of the Illinois Association of School Nurses.

"School nurses are on the front line in identifying students who are in need," Traut said.

Inadequate nutrition is suspected in the frequent visitors to nurses' offices, as it handicaps a body's immune system and makes it more vulnerable to diseases, such as colds and the flu.

Teachers send kids in who have fallen asleep in class or are lethargic - the students who just don't respond, who aren't involved in class, who aren't active, beyond routine misbehavior.

"It's fatigue; the teachers see it," Traut said of how hunger can lead to exhaustion in some students.

In her district, when such a problem is discovered, the nurses work with school social workers to find help for the families. It may be assisting them in signing up for the federal free or reduced-price breakfast and lunch programs, or directing them to community agencies that can help them get food.

"With this economy (nurses) have definitely seen an increase in students needing resources," Traut said.

That's evident in the numbers of students taking those lunches in St. Charles District 303, which runs 17 schools. In November 2005, about 747 students were eating the discounted or free lunches each day; last week, 1,425 students did so.

A check of state school report card data throughout Kane, McHenry, Lake and western Cook counties shows that the number of low-income students has increased almost everywhere, from Kaneland Unit School District 302 to Barrington Unit District 220.

Those school lunches, plus school breakfast programs and free milk programs, are just a couple of the tools being used to fight hunger.

There's an alphabet soup of federal programs - TANF, WIC, SNAP, TEFAP - aimed at specific populations and economic conditions. (That's Temporary Aid to Needy Families; Women, Infants and Children; Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program; and The Emergency Food Assistance Program.)

As of August 2009, there are 24 percent more people using SNAP (what used to be called food stamps) than there were in August 2008.

Organized to help

The foot soldiers who get food to people work or volunteer at places like the Greater Chicago Food Depository, the Northern Illinois Food Bank and hundreds of soup kitchens and charity pantries throughout the suburbs.

NIFB serves 13 counties in northern Illinois. Greater Chicago serves the city of Chicago and Cook County. Between the two of them, they distributed 80 million pounds of food in 2008.

And both say they are on track to break that record this year.

"We're looking to distribute 32 to 36 million pounds" compared to 22 million last year, said Sarah Slavenas, communications manager for the NIFB. "As the recession drags on, we're trying to get as much food out as we can."

Slavenas attributes the bank's 35 percent increase in demand to unemployment, the housing crisis and stock market.

"We hold a third of the state's unemployed, and as long as unemployment stays high, we're going to continue to see a lot of people," she said. "We're seeing a lot of people who under normal conditions wouldn't need our help. We're seeing all ages, all education backgrounds."

Donations from businesses are key to filling that need.

Just this month, Walmart donated 40 refrigerated 24-foot trucks to food banks around the nation; Northern Illinois Food Bank managed to snag one.

It goes around to Walmart and Sam's Club stores, collecting food that the store has decided not to sell - bread, produce, canned goods, meat, frozen items - that would have been thrown away. There are 25 such stores in the NIFB's service area.

Dave Korczykowski, food recovery manager for the NIFB, said the organization started working with Sam's Club stores two years ago. This year alone, they have received about 1 million pounds of food from Sam's Club. He expects they will receive at least 1.5 million pounds from Walmart stores.

"People (from pantries) that pick up the food absolutely rave about the food they get," he said.

"It's still good food," said Aurora store manager James Dahms, explaining it isn't damaged or out-of-date. "It gets pulled off (the shelf) quicker than food standards."

At NIFB, Slavenas said monetary donations are preferred from individuals because of purchasing discounts the organization receives. But there's also no such thing as too many food donations or volunteers.

"We could probably deliver 50 million pounds of food, and it still wouldn't be enough," Slavenas said. "Hopefully people will open their hearts during the holidays and do what they can."

<div class="infoBox"> <h1>More Coverage</h1> <div class="infoBoxContent"> <div class="infoArea"> <h2>Stories</h2> <ul class="links"> <li><a href="/story/?id=340003">Keeping the shelves stocked<span class="date"> [11/27/09]</span></a></li> <li><a href="/story/?id=340001">Do you have enough to eat?<span class="date"> [11/27/09]</span></a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div>