Shelves are stocked and volunteers are ready, but leaders at food banks in northern Santa Barbara County say they’re bracing for another test, the federal government shutdown.
At Catholic Charities in Lompoc, Client Services Regional Coordinator Ryzbel Pack remembers how quickly families turned to them when federal paychecks stopped back in 2018.
“I remember receiving clients from the base, military people, and also workers from the federal prison here in Lompoc. It was a hard time for them because they were not receiving,” Pack said.
She says Catholic Charities saw a noticeable increase in clients, especially federal employees, during that time.
“We were receiving more clients. The Foodbank really helped and we got an increase of clients also. The community help us a lot,” Pack said.
Now, Pack says they are preparing for the same scenario again, leaning heavily on community generosity.
“That’s how we prepare, by depending on the local donors, to wake up the community to give us more donations,” he said.
The Foodbank of Santa Barbara County is also bracing for a ripple effect. Director of Marketing for the Foodbank of Santa Barbara County Laurel Alcantar says the last shutdown hit federal workers hard, forcing the Foodbank to step in.
“When we had a prolonged government shutdown in 2018, that had an impact on federal workers. We had a lot of people who weren’t getting by,” Alcantar said.
She says the Foodbank quickly shifted operations back then.
“We adjusted, added food distributions specifically to meet that need,” she said.
But today’s circumstances are different. Alcantar says demand for food has stayed at pandemic levels even years later, and earlier this year the Foodbank lost USDA supplies it usually counts on.
That means a prolonged shutdown could leave them stretched even thinner, and more dependent on community donations to fill the gap.
“We are here for the community and I would say lean into that, lean into your local community for support, lean into your local community to give support,” Alcantar said.
Both the Foodbank and Catholic Charities say they are ready to adapt, but they warn it will take local support to get through another shutdown. Neighbors helping neighbors, they say, will be key if the federal gridlock drags on.
