Springfield, IL (WAND) – Organizations across Springfield are seeing a higher demand for food as resources dwindle.
More than three dozen micro pantries are located across Springfield, and empty shelves have become a common sight. Kathy Smith, founder of PBJ Springfield, said she has seen a sharp rise in demand.
“The numbers we’re going through at the pantries … and then the people I talked to in the alleys, I just have seen a huge increase in demand for more food,” Smith said. “Kids go running to the pantry right after school; that’s a heartbreaker.”
Smith started PBJ Springfield five years ago. She said the mission of making sandwiches has stayed the same, but demand has shifted. This year has been record-setting, with some locations going through 200 sandwiches a day.
“We average anywhere from 3000 to 4000 a week,” said Smith. “We set a record three months ago, and it was 5,585.”
PBJ Springfield sandwiches are offered at the St. John’s Breadline. Patrick McConnell, area director for Springfield Catholic Charities, runs the breadline and Holy Family Food Pantry.
McConnell said participation has doubled at both locations. He said pantries are seeing about 100 more families than in previous months, and that there has been a steady increase throughout the year. He said the breadline has gone from serving around 200 meals a day to 350 to 400, across both breakfast and lunch service.
“For some people, it’s just rough economic times, whether it’s, you know, having hours cut, layoffs, some with changes to SNAP,” McConnell said. “So there’s really not one specific issue that you can pinpoint. It could be a myriad of different issues.”
McConnell said Catholic Charities relies on community support, including donation requests for food and a staff that plans meals based on estimated daily need. He said staff members step up when supplies run low, and that everyone who comes to the breadline is fed.
Smith said Springfield has 40 outdoor pantries citywide, with focus placed on the most-used locations. She said anyone can help stock the pantries by dropping off canned goods, including pop-top items for unhoused people.
