PINELLAS COUNTY, Fla. — At a time when so many local families are struggling to afford groceries, Pinellas County food pantries are working hard to keep food stocked!
One local organization called Love Thy Neighbor says over the last couple of weeks, donations have slowed down, making its mission more difficult.
"I get very emotional. I've been there before. I've been hungry before. I've had to go to Pizza Hut to see if they were throwing out pizzas with my kids to make sure they've had dinner. So I've lived it," said Joanne Braccio with Love Thy Neighbor.
It's a situation Joanne Braccio knows all too well.
"You don't know how many people come through these doors and tell me, I'm so grateful for you. I would have been hungry for the last five months if you weren't here," said Braccio.
She runs the Love Thy Neighbor food pantry in St. Petersburg, and she's noticed that recently, her shelves are looking bare.
"We are not getting the donations that we used to get last year. I can't keep simple things like cans of corn and green beans on the shelves," said Braccio.
She attributes the decrease in donations to the rising cost of living.
"I think businesses are hurting, and I think people don't think there is a need. There are so many other things people are paying for now that they didn't have to pay for. Rents have gone up, electricity has gone up," said Braccio.
"I've seen an increase in the homeless population in St. Petersburg...people unable to pay their bills," said April Hush with The Burg Community Table, which provides hot meals for the homeless.
Braccio isn't the only one impacted.
"I've always been told that the people who have the least give the most, and with the population that struggles from day to day as it is, is now unable to donate that canned good," said Hush.
Love Thy Neighbor organizers say donations are so slim right now that they are having to put up signs to limit the amount of items that families can take.
As we get closer to the holiday season, Hush says donations are more important than ever.
"Especially at the holiday time, it's not just homeless people, it's house people that are impacted, that are struggling. There's no holiday meal. In the case of children, there are no holiday toys," said Hush.
Braccio says the food pantry needs meats, canned vegetables, canned tuna, simple Thanksgiving foods, and more.
"If we don't get stuff in here, they are going to go hungry," said Braccio.
