To reach UWSC's bold goal in financial stability, 2,358 additional individuals should be served annually through emergency food programs.

In FY19-20, we saw only a modest increase in individuals served compared to our baseline. The coronavirus pandemic meant our area shelters and pantries had to modify their operations to keep staff and clients alike safe. The pandemic also meant pantry visitors tried to reduce their visits to limit exposure. Both led to a decline in individuals served each month from March thru June 2020. Our partners were resilient, however! For example, MICA Food Pantry started offering food deliveries to central pick-up spots and doorsteps (even bringing on a new AmeriCorps volunteer to coordinate this), while The Salvation Army pantry provided larger sacks of food to help households get by for longer.

In FY20-21, we then saw a dramatic decrease in individuals served by emergency food programs. Curiously, this actually was a "win" for local families. Why? The decrease in individuals served at food pantries was directly related to an increase in their financial stability due to temporary pandemic support programs, such as increased food assistance (SNAP) benefits, stimulus checks, etc.. In other words, in FY20-21, food insecurity locally decreased as more families had the means to buy their own food. Unfortunately, anecdotal evidence suggests many singles and childless households still faced significant hunger. Housing insecurity also grew. In fact, both ACCESS and The Bridge Home served more individuals at their shelters in FY20-21 than in the previous 2 years and, therefore, provided more meals.

At the start of Year 3 (FY21-22), with pandemic support programs largely ended, food insecurity is again on the rise. We therefore anticipate an increase in emergency food program visitors in the year ahead.

The data reported here comes from ClearImpact Scorecard, "Disaggregated Data, Meal-Gap." It includes data from all Story County food pantries that report data to the Food Bank of Iowa and/or directly to United Way of Story County, as well as from all adult/family shelter programs (ACCESS, The Bridge Home) and from Good Neighbor Emergency Assistance (Emergency Food Vouchers program).

Note: YSS' youth shelters must follow IDOE nutrition guidelines, qualifying their meals for reimbursement. Similarly, the Senior Commodity Food Box program (Heartland Senior Services) must meet USDA nutrition guidelines. Thus, these meals - though also "emergency" food - are counted under the UWSC Health pillar, not here under Financial Stability.