LAKE COUNTY, Ohio — There is a massive effort underway in Lake County to make sure people are not going hungry. The need is not new, but the numbers are.
News 5 gathered this story during the government shutdown, before the immediate threat of losing benefits for millions of Americans and Ohioans through the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
Which would mean even more people looking for this kind of help atop an already growing need.
“God says we should be helping our neighbors, and our brothers and sisters,” said Susan March, food pantry coordinator at Zion Lutheran Church in Painesville.
Twice a month, Zion Lutheran Church in Painesville transforms into a food pantry.
“Incomes now are different,” said Laura, who requested her last name not be used.
She comes to the food pantry at Zion to help her make it through the end of the month.
“It’s very helpful,” said Gerard Mirbel, Bishop of Miracle Revival Ministry in Painesville.
He said he doesn’t take a salary from his church and instead uses the money he has to support his ministry, which also runs a food pantry.
“We see the need is so great,” said Mirbel. “People come from across Lake County, everywhere from Willoughby, Wickliffe, Ashtabula, and Madison. People come to get help in Painesville because it’s a great resource for them.”
Many Lake County food pantries are attached to faith-based organizations.
“I can stock up on vegetables that I can’t really afford it in the store because it’s just too high,” said Annette Harvey at Zion.
March said Zion gets fresh food from their friends at Trader Joe’s.
“We have a really good relationship with them,” she said. “We pick it up the same day we distribute it because we have no room to store it. We still are working on a shoestring here!”
The food pantry is a blessing to dozens of families.
“Without them, I would probably have bare cupboards and not a whole lot of food,” said Chuck Castle.
Castle receives SNAP benefits, but still lines up, and he’s not alone.
“The cost of living is definitely a worry for a lot of us,” said Castle. “Especially, if you’re on a fixed income.”
The average meal cost in Lake County is 33% more than the SNAP benefit, according to the Urban Institute, a gap that can contribute to increased food insecurity.
“We have people that come and say, ‘I have never been here before,’” said March.
She said Zion is averaging about four new families a month.
“And last month it was extraordinarily high,” she said.
Zion Lutheran Church opened its new, larger space for its food pantry operation just a few weeks ago.
They had to, said March, to meet the growing need, which, for them, is currently about 3,000 people a year.
“I think it’s sad that we have that many people who can’t get by on their income, fully, you know,” she said. “Hopefully things will get better.”
Zion is one of 40 food pantries in Lake County.
“The need for help looks like any one of our neighbors,” said Dione DeMitro, president and CEO of United Way of Lake County. “I’d love to get more people to come to the distribution days because when you stand in line and you’re putting food into the back of someone’s car and they apologize or try to explain away why they’re there -- we want to treat people with dignity -- and the fact of the matter is, more people are finding themselves in that position today. People who two years ago wouldn’t have ever of considered having to ask for help have found themselves in challenging circumstances.”
She said what keeps her up at night is what the data shows.
“And that’s in Lake County, in the United States, if you’re poor you don’t get to live as long as everybody else, and I don’t think that’s fair,” she said.
Right now, the data shows 11% of Lake County households live in poverty.
While another 27% are above the poverty line, yet still struggling to make ends meet.
“That’s where we’re seeing the downward pressure is those families that prior to a couple years ago they were doing OK but might be one critical event away from disaster,” said DeMitro.
United Way of Lake County helps support the 40 food pantries countywide.
DeMitro said larger food pantries, and those with a budget to have food delivered or to pick it up, partner almost exclusively with the Greater Cleveland Food Bank and take some items from United Way.
She said they have several smaller food pantries where almost everything they distribute comes from United Way or what they collect themselves.
DeMitro said the number of pantries with set staff has remained relatively stable at 40, but their need has increased in recent years.
She said they’ve also seen an increase in the smaller, stand-alone, or pop-up pantries at various locations.
“We average a little over $80,000 each year in the investment back into the community,” said DeMitro. “Our goal this year is to get to $100,000 which I think we’re going to be able to do.”
The United Way also helps support the free 211 Lifeline in Lake County. Calls for food assistance are up 40% over the last three years, said DiMetro.
For her, the work is personal.
“My junior year of high school we were homeless,” she said. “We had to move in with my grandparents.”
She knows the hardship, but also the hope from a helping hand.
“The path of my life changed entirely, and that’s you know, when you say what keeps me up at night is what keeps me going during the day, is knowing the work we’re doing literally right now, people are benefiting from,” she said.
“It would make it tougher for me,” said Reverand Chris Bihary, another missionary in Painesville. “It would make it tougher for many people here in Painesville.”
“It means a lot,” said Harvey. “It keeps food in my refrigerator, and I don’t have to worry about running out of food at the end of the month.”
When asked what she would do if the food pantries, like Zion, were not here, she became silent for a moment before answering.
“That’s a good question,” she said. “It would be really scary.”
“People are good, and food pantries are good,” said Laura about the support at Zion and elsewhere.
“I want people to know how much it helps and see the people it helps that we’re just like everyone else,” said Castle.
The 40 food pantries in Lake County are of different sizes.
Zion is a large operation, but there are bigger pantries.
Resources are limited. They hustle to stay open and to serve the public.
Donations and partnerships keep them going, along with volunteers and support from nonprofits like the United Way and the Greater Cleveland Food Bank.
DiMetro said food insecurity is a symptom of the larger problem.
“I think we really have to get serious about understanding the causes of poverty and how we break the cycle,” she said.
She said it is a complicated Venn diagram, but United Way of Lake County’s mission is to measurably improve lives in Lake County through four areas of focus: youth opportunities, financial security, community resilience, and healthy communities.
“Our job really is twofold,” she said. “One, is to raise funds and invest into our community partners that are helping to address where those greatest needs exist in our four key areas.”
The other, she said, is direct service through programs like their back-to-school bash to get kids school-ready or their Feed Lake County initiative.
The 211 Lifeline is a free and confidential service that helps people in Lake County find the health and human service programs they need.
