TULSA, Okla — The Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma works to make sure people don’t go hungry.
Last year, it distributed 31 million pounds of food to 24 counties in the state.
WATCH: LOCAL IMPACT: Government shutdown could potentially affect needed services
It’s striving to stay prepared as the government shutdown continues.
Jeff Marlow, the CEO of the Food Bank of Eastern Oklahoma.
He said there are a lot of uncertainties, but the food bank is prepared to a certain extent, since most of the food comes from other suppliers besides the government.
Staff say 15 percent of it comes from the federal government through The Emergency Food Assistance Program or TEFAP.
"We actually have our TEFAP ordered, and we're good for a little over a month," said Marlow. "But if this goes further, we won't be able to put the next order in, right? And that could be, that would be like a food crisis for us."
Marlow said he was disappointed the shutdown is affecting people.
"The government needs to get back to work and do their job, do their do their due diligence," he said. "They owe the citizens of the US."
Another organization that could experience changes is the Supplemental Nutrition Program for women, infants and children - or WIC.
Scripps News reported WIC could run out of funding if the shutdown lasts for more than a week or two.
Maryellen Willit a mother of two from Edmond said WIC has helped her tremendously in affording basic needs.
“If WIC is affected? I mean, we'd have to cut down a lot on like our spending of other things," she said. "We'd have to reach out to probably food pantries and stuff.”
According to the Tulsa WIC branch’s Marketing and PR Coordinator, Lori Esser-Just, business is running as usual and clients are still being taken.
She said she couldn’t speak about the branch’s future during the shutdown, but that is the current situation.
As for people like Willit, they hope to continue receiving beneficial services.
"It's just really, really helped, like, take off anxiety, off my mind," she said. "We can afford vegetables, we can afford our milk and bread and cheese and yogurt and all these things."
Stay in touch with us anytime, anywhere --
- 2 News Oklahoma on your schedule | Download on your TV, watch for free. How to watch on your streaming device
- Download our free app for Apple, Android and Kindle devices.
- Like us on Facebook
- Follow us on Instagram
- Watch LIVE 24/7 on YouTube
