Food Bank Partners with SCASD to Provide Holiday Meals to Those in Need

Once again, State College Food Bank is working toward the goal that no one in Centre County goes without a Thanksgiving dinner.

On Tuesday evening, a little more than week away from the holiday, cars lined the State College Area School District Delta Program parking lot as food bank staff and volunteers loaded up turkeys and all the fixings for more than 400 households for a second year in a row.

“After the success of our drive-through distribution in partnership with the State College Area School District and Central PA Food Bank last year, we saw the need to host the event again,” Allayn Beck, executive director of SCFB, said.

“The goal of this distribution is to reach those in Centre County who do not meet income qualifications for their local pantry, but could still use some help to get through the holiday. Pandemic or not, there will always be families who can use extra assistance during the holiday. The mission of the food bank is to make sure no one is going hungry, and that is what we are doing tonight.”

The annual Thanksgiving feast comes as food prices surge across the country. Food prices are up 3.7 percent so far this year, according to the American Farm Bureau Federation. The 20-year average increase is about 2.4 percent.

In addition, Beck said the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program benefits have decreased for some families and individuals they serve.

“The increase in food costs with a decrease in SNAP will most likely have an impact on people. Any increase in prices, not just food, will affect food insecurity. When trying to save money, cutting a food budget tends to be the first place people look,” Beck said.

The food bank expected to see numbers grow drastically at the beginning of the pandemic, but Beck said that is not what happened.

“Instead, our numbers have fluctuated up and down over the past year and a half. I think the fluctuation has been caused by an increase in available food throughout the county and the timing of stimulus payments. As we head into the holiday season, our numbers have been steadily increasing,” Beck said.

For those who are struggling with food insecurity, Beck said, “The best thing people can do is give us a call, at (814) 234-2310. Our staff is ready and willing to connect people with our programs and other community programs to ensure no one is going hungry in Centre County.”

Sourcing food remains a problem, Beck said. It is helpful when people donate items off the “Current Needs List” that can be found at scfoodbank.org.

“Every donation, large or small, helps,” Beck said.

This was obvious during the drive-through food distribution, with people saying thank you for the donations. All the volunteers were smiling and cheerful, despite the cold temperatures.

“Our community is beyond amazing and giving. It truly is humbling to see the support we continue to receive. We have people bringing us their free turkeys from the grocery store, we have children collecting food for their birthdays, we have donors answering our call for help, we have dedicated volunteers coming in to help, and so much more; it’s amazing to see. The kindness we receive from our community fuels our efforts to provide hunger relief for hundreds of struggling individuals and families in Centre County,” Beck said.

“It is clear that our community doesn’t want anyone to go hungry, so we are answering their call and doing just that. Thanksgiving for Centre County is one of the many ways we are helping.”