Emergency food providers in Syracuse are under mounting pressure as cuts to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) ripple through the community. Organizations that have long served as a safety net, including the Interfaith Community Collective, are now facing an overwhelming surge in demand.
The Interfaith Community Collective partners with food donors, farmers, and the Central New York Food Bank to distribute food across the region. Its Executive Director, Galen Murphy-Stanley, oversees a major food distribution site that feeds more than 1,000 people each week and moves hundreds of tons of food each quarter.
But despite their reach, Murphy-Stanley says resources are stretched to the breaking point.
“As successful as we are, we struggle to fund our program, to buy food, and to keep the lights on,” Murphy-Stanley said. “The predicted increase of consumers of emergency food scares the hell out of me, as it will exhaust what we can provide for all the people.”
For many in Syracuse, SNAP has been a lifeline. Tim Bryant, who relied on the program while recovering from a traumatic brain injury in graduate school, says the program is crucial for people rebuilding their lives after hardship.
“I met educators, attorneys, successful business leaders, people from all walks of life who, like me, had their worlds turned upside down by unforeseen accidents or illness,” Bryant said. “Most of them had relied on or were still relying on SNAP benefits to get by.”
The Syracuse Onondaga Food Systems Alliance (SOFSA) is pushing the issue into the political spotlight, urging local candidates in the upcoming election to outline their positions on food insecurity, which can be found here.
