Manna Food Center Assisting Residents Impacted by Government Shutdown
“The mission of Manna Food Center is to help our neighbors that are at risk of food security. In Montgomery County that’s about 63,000 people during normal times; and we help people through food distribution, nutrition education, and advocacy,” said Manna Food Center’s Director of Development & Communications, Stephanie Hubbard.
The gift of giving here at the Manna Food Center in Gaithersburg doesn’t stop there; they will also be helping Montgomery County residents impacted by the government shutdown.
“This is definitely an unprecedented time in the Washington DC region, and people who have not been receiving paychecks… now two paychecks to date; are finding themselves trying to figure out how to stretch their monthly budget and to prioritize expenses in their lives, and as we know people’s food budget is typically has the most flexibility,” said Hubbard.
To help accommodate residents impacted by the government shutdown, Manna recently removed their income requirements.
“...So that people who are affected by the government shutdown who might have a salary that would normally prohibit them under normal circumstances from coming to Manna now can come and receive food support during this time when they’re not receiving a paycheck. We also wanted to make it open to people who are impacted from the shutdown, who may work at a restaurant that serves government employees but now doesn’t have patrons… they may be getting less shifts; and although they’re not a government employee they are also going to have reduced wages,” said Hubbard.
Manna officials say in order to receive services during this special time, proof of residency is needed. People will also need to call 301-424-1130 during normal business hours to make an appointment, so Manna volunteers will know how much food to prepare.
Officials say Manna Food Center has several distributions centers throughout Montgomery County.
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