How to Help, How to Eat
A few ideas for giving your time/money, and a few ideas for stretching your food dollars.
Because funding for SNAP runs out at the end of the month, a few suggestions, dependent upon your situation.
If you've got money or time to spare:
Make a monetary donation to Feeding America or directly to your local food bank or mutual aid organization. Dependent on the size of the food bank/organization, they may be able to take advantage of bulk deals.
If it is helpful to your local org. to donate specific items, find out what those are and go buy some! Sometimes your local community aid group just needs some peanut butter, spices, or menstrual supplies. With Thanksgiving coming up, maybe the food bank has more specific needs.
“Oh no, they only have a basic webpage and a phone number to find out!” I feel you, phone-averse friends. If you wish your local group(s) had better information available, can you volunteer your time? You can ask if they would like help creating a stronger online presence. Or maybe they need better spreadsheets to keep track of supplies. The revolution always needs admin, as they say.
Speaking of volunteering time, if you are able, ask how else you might get involved directly.
Consider hosting an event that raises money and/or collects non-perishable food products for a local organization. This is easier than you might think! You’d be surprised how many places will take the extra business for hosting your event (please ask nicely), and how many of your talented friends will want to help (again, plz). Know any artists? Musicians? Theatre kids dying to put on a show? Fire-eaters? (No really, I do know one.) Bet you can figure out something that will raise some money.
If you need assistance/are stretching those dollars:
No shame in needing help, friends. I’ve been on SNAP before, and when my kids were small, we received WIC. These services exist for a reason— we all need to eat— and it absolutely sucks that our government can’t get its shit together.
I cannot account for everyone’s local resources, and I won’t patronize you with suggested shopping lists, especially if you’re relying on whatever turns up at the food bank. Of course you know beans and rice are cheap. That said, a few places you might find some ideas:
Budget Bytes: I’ve made a lot of good meals from this site, and while their $ amounts attached to some recipes may not be the same in 2025 money (sigh), they are mostly uncomplicated dishes that taste pretty good.
The Sad Bastard Cookbook: Food You Can Make So You Don't Die: A free downloadable cookbook. Easy eats, some of them quite cheap.
Your library will have cookbooks, if you like your recipes in print.
“Okay, I know beans and rice are cheap, but tell me again how I cook dried beans?”
If you haven’t already, find out which of your local restaurants/franchises have “Kids Eat Free” days. I always forget that some places do this, and maybe someone in your community has already compiled a list.
Little things can add up on a grocery shop: I know, I hate that they all have our data too, but I absolutely take advantage of store apps for sales and whatever freebies I can cash in. I cashed in some points to get a free bag of chocolate chips just yesterday. Because chocolate is so expensive lately, I don’t usually buy it. Between stuff like that and trying to plan meals more around what’s in season/on sale, I have saved a lot. If you’re wondering if the store brand version is fine: Most of the time, yes.
Potluck time? If you can manage one dish (side, some bread, dessert, whatever), get some friends together and eat, and everyone can make up a plate of leftovers to take home. Or maybe you all bring some kind of soup, with the idea that you’ll all take some home. Soup is easier to stretch for a crowd, and if nothing else, you can freeze it.
Not all advice will be applicable to you, so please trust that all areas will have their own needs. Thanks for looking out for one another.