What’s happening with SNAP?

As you may have seen in the news, our local food pantries are facing an imminent crisis as over 140,000 of our Erie County neighbors prepare for delayed, reduced Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits.

With grocery prices climbing, the holiday season approaching (the time of year pantries serve the most food) and SNAP falling through for so many, the most vulnerable families in our community will be turning to food pantries, like ours at Evergreen Health and Community Access Services (CAS), to make ends meet.

Our pantry teams are rolling up their sleeves and preparing to fight back against this drastic rise in food insecurity: already, in the past month we’ve served 15% more people than our previous 18-month average.

Where can I access food assistance?

If you need food assistance, Evergreen Health and CAS are here to support you. We’re members of FeedMore WNY and offer walk-in grocery assistance at two Food Pantry locations in Buffalo:

Evergreen Health Food Pantry (206 S. Elmwood Ave.)

Open to eligible Evergreen patients and 14201 residents

Mondays and Fridays: 9:30-11:30am

Tuesdays and Thursdays: 1-3pm

Community Access Services Food Pantry (3297 Bailey Ave.)

Open to eligible Evergreen patients and 14215 residents

Mondays through Thursdays: 10am-1pm and 2-3pm

Walk into the lobby of either building during Pantry hours and complete the short intake with our pantry representative to receive groceries. Eligible patients and residents can receive assistance every 30 days.

If you are looking for additional resources, we compiled a list of local food resources within 2 miles of each Evergreen location. You can also use FeedMore WNY’s Food Pantry Locator.

How can I support Evergreen and CAS’ Food Pantries?

If you’re able to give, we appreciate your support in making sure everyone in our community has enough to eat, during the holiday season and always.

We’re accepting donations of shelf-stable goods at both of our Food Pantry locations. We are looking for:

• canned vegetables (mixed vegetables, green beans, carrots, peas, collard greens, spinach, tomatoes, etc.)
• canned fruit (applesauce, mixed fruit, peaches, pears, oranges, apricots, pineapple, etc.)
• canned protein (tuna, chicken)
• canned beans
• grains (pasta, rice, oatmeal, mac & cheese, cereal)
• dairy (shelf stable milk, no products needing refrigeration)
• peanut butter

Donations can be dropped off at the Evergreen Pantry on Wednesdays from 9am to 5pm, or at the CAS Pantry on Fridays from 8:30am to 4:30pm.

You can also make a monetary donation online—every dollar helps.

We appreciate your support of the Evergreen and CAS food pantries, and the many families who depend on them, during this unprecedented time.