‘Tis the season for a lot of shopping and gift-idea posts, because even in the current wackadoodle economic climate, folks still like to buy stuff for the people they love. But we do understand that this sometimes feels more than a little discordant given the state of… well, everything. It’s fun to distract ourselves with shiny objects, even if we’re just window shopping, but thanks to our dire president and vexing economy the joys even of that simply aren’t there for a lot of people.
Thanksgiving is rolling up on us very quickly, and there are many, many, many — more than anyone would like to think — Americans who have lost or will lose the SNAP benefits they depend on to afford food, partly due to the government shutdown and also because of deep funding cuts in the moronic Big Beautiful Bill. As of now, I believe there might be partial funding, but also a burden for all recipients to reapply, from a government that would really prefer not to pay for any of this at all. The net effect is likely that families will still be imperiled by confusion and glitches and bad intel. Between that and the economy, November and December may not be especially festive.
How to help? Most areas have regional food banks, like this one in Los Angeles. There’s also No Kid Hungry and Feeding America. The Kitchn did a post about the best ways to donate, and said that cash is often the easiest because then the food banks can spend it on whatever they know they need, in whatever form they need it. They also recommend contacting the food bank you’re planning to donate to, in the event that their specific needs have shifted, and that you should consider accessibility when choosing what products to donate. For example, not everyone has access to or can comfortably use a can opener. If you have advice on this subject, or a particular favorite national organization, please share in the comments.
There are a lot of vital local initiatives as well. For example, Gaby Dalkin of What’s Gaby Cooking recently did a huge food drive in Los Angeles, so maybe there’s a chef in your town who’s arranging something similar (props to her; she was very active after the Palisades and Altadena fires and fed a lot of First Responders). The Hollywood Food Coalition provides nightly dinners and helps redirect food donations so that organizations can access each others’ surpluses, and some L.A. parks do free snacks and hot dinners. Farmers markets also occasionally need volunteers to help distribute extra produce to these orgs. Food Lifeline says some neighborhoods are starting Little Free Pantries — like the libraries, but for shelf-stable foods, and yes, I DID misread that as Little Free Panties for a second which sounded less than ideal. At any rate, I thought this might be a spot where Fug Nationals from all over can share the smaller, homegrown organizations that are important to them and significant in their communities — because yeah, there may be a lot of geographic overlap in our readership, but sometimes reading about a great idea in another city can help us find our local equal, or might inspire someone to make it happen in their own town.
It’d also be lovely to know what, if any, places allow kids of varying ages to volunteer. I’m always looking for opportunities to get the boys involved, which is marginally easier the older they get, but it’s challenging for families with elementary-age kids who are trying to establish a culture of service. And let’s not stop at Thanksgiving; Christmas and Hanukkah are around the corner, so if you know of anything beyond the usual Toys for Tots — also a good source! — please share it.
Finally, I’d be remiss not to mention that there are other reasons families might be experiencing a painful holiday season. This website purports to match people to the wish lists of domestic violence shelters, who seek goods and toys for women and children who are spending the season with them or starting over in a new home.
