Anyone with school-aged kids can tell you that the summer months require snacks. So. Many. Snacks. With increased outdoor time, longer days, and the shift out of school day routines, the clamor for snacks is nearly constant.

This requires juggling on the part of any household, but it can be a matter of grave concern in families who depend on school-based breakfast and lunch for their children. Food pantries can assist with the approximately 200 extra meals required during summer break, but the pantries themselves receive exponentially more donations around the winter holidays. By the time the warmer months roll around, community food drives are in short supply and in-kind donations drop significantly. The holidays, typically a time of great generosity, have passed, but the needs of our neighbors last all year round.

Some 28% of Connecticut households are Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed — or ALICE. They earn more than the Federal Poverty Level but not enough to afford the basic expenses where they live. Together with the 10% of households below the Federal Poverty Level, 38% of Connecticut households were below the ALICE threshold as of 2021. Due to the mismatch of wages and cost of living, 45% of employees have had to choose between an essential expense such as food, rent, or utilities and paying a medical bill, according to a study from Goodroot.

For those of us who want to help, and for those who need help, there is a way. On the shoreline, there are a number of organizations committed to making certain that food remains available to those who need it — which is a wider cross-section of our local community than you might realize.

Difficulty Doesn’t Have To Mean Disaster

Christine Sandford is president of the East Haven Food Pantry (EHFP) and says the pantry has seen its needs expand significantly since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic. EHFP currently serves over 300 families on a monthly basis and offers home delivery of pantry items to those with transport or mobility concerns. East Haven schools partner with the pantry for a backpack program that sends food items home with students on Fridays. Granola bars, toaster pastries, cereals, etc. help fill the gap on weekends when school meals are not available.

Shoreline Soup Kitchens and Pantries (SSKP) funds a backpack program as well. The organization serves 11 towns with five different food pantries and provides hot meals at eight locations each week. Amy Hollis, Executive Director of SSKP, emphasizes that all are welcome at meal sites, no questions asked. “Our mission is to provide food and fellowship. We serve food, yes, but [you] can also be hungry for companionship.”

Hollis notes that SSKP pantries served over 160,000 people with groceries in 2023 alone. She says that non-perishable food donations from the community are added to wholesale grocery items, milk, eggs, and fresh produce that the pantry purchases through Connecticut Foodshare.

Both in-kind and monetary donations from the public bolster the resources of each individual pantry.

Though many of us are aware that need exists in our communities, the extent to which it appears in each town and neighborhood can go unseen. Sandford, who has over 20 years experience providing food assistance, noted that food insecurity is often a hidden need. “No one likes to advertise that they are struggling, but the people in need are your neighbors.” Amy Hollis reiterated this point and added, “Food assistance would ease financial burdens for many households. Too often people wait until they are in absolute crisis before they feel they can come to us.”

Sandford offered to clear up another misconception that prevents people who need them from taking advantage of food pantries. “Any person or family utilizing the food pantry will not be preventing others in need from getting assistance,” she said.

Thinking Beyond The Holiday Food Drive

When making donations of food items, Hollis says the best approach is to think about things that you yourself might like to eat. Name-brand cereals and snack foods are especially appreciated by children, who are often self-conscious about receiving nutrition assistance. Is someone in your family gluten-free or dairy-free? Living with food allergies or following a low-salt diet? People experiencing food insecurity may also have restrictions. “Everyone has the right to make choices when they eat,” Hollis says, “and that is not incompatible with gratitude.”

Here are some ways to help any time during the year:

Shoreline Soup Kitchens and Pantries (SSKP). Serving Essex, Chester, Clinton, Madison, Old Saybrook, East Lyme, Lyme, Old Lyme, Killingworth, Westbrook and Deep River. All are welcome at meal sites. 860-388-1988. shorelinesoupkitchens.org. All are welcome, no questions asked, even those just looking for companionship.

SSKP Food Pantries:

SSKP Meal Sites:

For SSKP donation drop off hours, visit shorelinesoupkitchens.org.

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Community Dining Room: A private, not-for-profit organization providing food, support, and companionship to our shoreline neighbors. We serve the south-central Connecticut shoreline. www.communitydiningroom.org/about-us

Community Services Food Bank of North Haven: www.town.north-haven.ct.us/government/town_departments/departments_(a_-_d)/community_services/support_services/food_bank.php

North Haven Food Pantry: www.northhavenucc.org/food-pantry

East Haven Food Pantry: www.easthavenfoodpantry.com

The Food Pantry of North Branford: www.foodpantrynb.org

Branford Food Pantry: www.branfordfoodpantry.org

Guilford Food Bank: www.guilfordfoodbank.org.

Killingworth Helping Hands Pantry: www.kwoct.org/helping-hands-food-pantry

Madison Community Services Food Pantry: www.madisoncommunityservices.org

Jillian Simms, the Apron Strings food columnist and feature writer for Shore Publishing can be reached at apronstringsct@gmail.com.