TULSA, Okla. — As hundreds of thousands of Oklahomans wait to see when they’ll get their SNAP benefits and how much money they’ll get, Food on the Move is helping fill in the gap.
At Food on the Move’s food hub in north Tulsa, Bryan Gray packed oranges inside bags on an assembly line. They were filled with fresh produce and some shelf staples in peanut butter.
“From my very first time with food on the move I just kept coming back,” said Bryan Gray.
January will mark 2 years since Gray started volunteering and when the call came out for a special distribution to help families who haven’t got their SNAP benefits, he knew he had to help.
“Families should not go hungry no matter what,” said Gray.
He was one of nearly two dozen volunteers at Food on the Move on Nov 5, working closely together and quickly to get these food bags ready for distribution this week.
“Personally satisfying to be able to see that one person can make a difference,” said Gray. “Even though we’re a team, each individual that comes here serves a purpose and it’s great to see.”
Normally Food on the Move does three distributions each month intentionally setting them for later in the month as a holdover until the 1st for families who use SNAP. In late October, that changed.
“Ten days before the first they found out their assistance isn’t going to be there and so did we,” said Rusty Rowe. “So, we said we have to do something to make up that first half of the month where normally they’d be using SNAP.”
Program Director Rusty Rowe says that’s why they called in volunteers, started collecting additional food, and put together two extra food drives in November.
“Even though it’s bad we’re going to do everything we can as a community to come together and help people in need,” said Rowe.
Rowe says they’ve already seen a 40% spike in need since the start of the year and an extra 100 people at each of their last two October events, after they learned about the SNAP pause.
“Those 100 families they’re foster care families, they’re working families, they’re people in hard situations that suddenly got it dropped in their lap that the money they thought was going to be there isn’t going to be there,” said Rowe.
He says they’re doing what Tulsa does best in crisis – come together to serve.
Gray says he’s thankful to be a part of it.
“It’s warm loving people doing the best that they can and it’s great,” said Gray.
The food distribution on Nov 6 is at Tulsa Community College’s Northeast Campus located at 3727 East Apache St. Tulsa, OK 74115.
It’ll start at 11:30am where they plan to give away more than 300 bags of groceries.
They’ll do another food drive-thru on Nov 13.
To learn more about Food on the Move or to donate click here.
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