Mills County Storehouse Prepares For Increased Demand At Food Pantry

With Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Progam (SNAP) benefits for nearly 450 Mills County households in limbo during the shutdown of the federal government, Mills County Storehouse volunteers are stepping up their effort to assist and provide relief to individuals and families struggling to keep food on the table.

The late fall and early winter months are typically a time of high demand at the Mills County Storehouse Food Pantry, but the need is expected to be even greater this year because of uncertainty regarding the federal SNAP benefits.

“A lot of it depends on how long the government shutdown lasts,” said Kori Kenkel, chair of the Mills County Storehouse Board Of Directors. “Our numbers typically go up over the holidays and the couple months after the holidays. We see a lot of people who are out of work and aren’t able to get jobs or need a little extra help.”

Kenkel said the Storehouse board and volunteers are trying the best they can to prepare for a possible uptick in demand at the food pantry as a growing number of Mills County residents and families struggle with food insecurity.

Last week, the Storehouse issued a public plea for both food and financial donations through social media and the response was encouraging, Kenkel noted.

“It’s just one of those things that we’re trying to prepare the best we can, “ she said. “People have been incredibly generous in the last 24 hours.

“We’re really blessed to live in a community that does such a great job of giving so much to the Storehouse.  That being said, the price of food has gone up drastically. We are getting way less food from Food Bank For The Heartland than we used to, which is at a much lower cost, simply because they have less, so we have had to purchase food for at least the last year to two years. Our cost of food has gone up significantly.”

The Food Bank For The Heartland in Omaha supplies food at a reduced cost to multiple food pantries in eastern Nebraska and western Iowa.

The latest numbers from the Iowa Hunger Coalition indicate 444 households (942 individuals) in Mills County received SNAP benefits in September. Mills County has 6.4% of its population enrolled in SNAP, receiving an average monthly household benefit of $363.75. In Fremont County, 9.25% of the population is enrolled in the program (267 households, 601 individuals), receiving an average monthly household benefit of $337.33.

According to Jeff Mitts, who helps manage the food pantry and serves as a liaison to the Storehouse board, an average of 165-175 families receive grocery assistance at the facility every month.

“That usually amounts to around 500 individuals,” he said. “That includes the children.”
In October, 564 individuals were served by the food pantry.

“That’s the highest number, by far, over the last year,” Mitts said.

Kenkel and Mitts agree the number of people receiving assistance at the food pantry has been rising gradually since the 2019 Missouri River Flood and COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and 2021.

“The goal for everyone who comes to the Storehouse, we try to stock them with one week of groceries per family, per month,” said. Kenkel “On top of that, in November, they get a Thanksgiving food box in addition to their normal week’s worth of groceries.”

This year, in addition to the Thanksgiving boxes, Kenkel said the Storehouse is also conducting its Operation Santa program in November. Operation Santa provides gift cards and toys to children up to 18 years old.

“In the past, we have done that the week after Thanksgiving,” she said. “This year, we’re going to do it the week before Thanksgiving in hopes that people can use those gift cards for Black Friday deals and get a little bit more.”

Kenkel noted that Mills County residents can support the Storehouse in multiple ways – donating money, non-perishable food or clothing, home décor, furniture, appliances and other items that can be sold at the Storehouse’s retail store.\“All of that gets sold and we use the money to buy food,” she said.

Donations of money can be made in person at the Storehouse (405 Nuckolls Street) or Glenwood State Bank. Donations can also be mailed to the Mills County Storehouse at P.O. Box 289, Glenwood, Iowa, 51534, or be made via Venmo (1.9 percent fee applies).

Some of the food items of greatest need at the pantry are peanut butter, canned protein (chicken, tuna), canned soup, pasta, low-sugar cereal, oatmeal, canned vegetables, instant potatoes, ramen noodles, Hamburger and Tuna Helper and boxed macaroni and cheese.