With SNAP benefits in limbo, Kentuckians flock to food pantries, feeding programs
Just after 8:30 a.m. Monday, the number of cars lined up to get free food at God’s Outreach Food Bank stretched onto East Main Street in Richmond.
“We typically see about five or more cars. Nothing like this,” said Mandy Agee, assistant director of God’s Outreach. There were more than 20 cars lined up 30 minutes before the pantry opened. By 9 a.m., the line has stretched to 30 cars in the Madison County pantry lot.
The federal Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, SNAP, ran out of money Saturday, the same day a new monthly round of benefits would’ve been issued to those who rely on the program, formerly called food stamps. Late Friday afternoon, two federal judges in separate rulings ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to fund SNAP using contingency money.
Expecting a lag in benefits even if the administration does not appeal, Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear has ordered $5 million from the state’s own “rainy day” fund to Feeding Kentucky. Later on Monday, the Trump administration said it will partially fund those SNAP benefits in November, but it would only be half of what people typically receive. The average monthly benefit is $183.
Nearly 600,000 Kentuckians receive SNAP benefits.
The Herald-Leader sent reporters to counties throughout Kentucky Monday to gauge demand and talk to those who rely on SNAP and other programs to feed their families.
Many pantries, like God’s Outreach, saw the surge start in late October, when the Trump administration first announced it would not fund SNAP past Nov. 1. Even with the federal bench rulings, it’s not clear if and when SNAP benefits will restart. Pantries are preparing to meet the additional demand.
Last week, God’s Outreach served about 527 people. It typically averages 300 a week, Agee said.
“There are people we have never served before or people we haven’t seen in years,” Agee said Monday. Before the pantry officially opened, a woman stopped at the back door. She had never been there before and wanted more information on how to apply.
Across Kentucky
In Laurel County early Monday, cars were bumper to bumper outside the Calvary Baptist Church, filled with individuals hoping to receive food boxes.
The more than 250 cars queuing — some as early as 6:30 a.m., more than four hours before the pickup — is the normal amount of demand volunteers serve the second Monday of each month, according to associate pastor Dennis Gibbs.
“It shows food is a real need in the community,” he said. “People struggle with not having enough. If you have ever gone hungry, you know that you don’t care what you get, but you’re just happy to have something to eat.”
Each car receives a box of food worth about $100 filled with dry goods, produce and canned foods, among other items. Unlike other places, Calvary Baptist does not require any assistance or job income verification, and since the loss of SNAP funds has received calls from people as far as North Carolina.
Traffic to God’s Pantry location in Somerset — the largest food bank serving 50 counties in the region — was steady Monday, as well. Brenda Russell, the executive director, anticipated 56 food carts would be distributed by closing at 2:30 p.m.
It was Friday that proved strange, with an outpouring of calls as individuals anticipated Saturday’s SNAP cutoff. Those calls for food assistance continued Monday, Russell said. “If I didn’t have a way to feed my kids, I would be panicking,” Russell said. The pantry serves 4,000 individual households — about 15% of Pulaski County’s population. The community has rallied for Russell and the pantry, leaving the shelves full and orders coming. But food insecurity, and the fear of it, will linger, Russell said. “You get a certain kind of PTSD when you go hungry,” Russell said. “People will continue to use the pantry for fear of their food being taken again.”
The Eastern Kentucky region, already plagued by high unemployment and poverty rates, tends to see more interest in food pantries during the fall and winter months as power bills reflect colder temperatures, said Trissa Scott, director of the Thankful Hearts pantry in Pikeville. This October has been especially bad, as SNAP recipients fear taking on the cold winter without federal food aid.
“We had 62 new clients on Thursday and Friday alone,” Scott said. “People were texting me past midnight last night asking about emergency food.”
At this time last year, the Two Fish and Five Loaves Ministry at Maple Street Church of God in Hazard gave away between 70 and 90 boxes of food a week. Over the last two weeks, the church has averaged more than 200 boxes, said Nancy Smith, who oversees the program.
“It’s humbling,” Smith said. “We’ve got a lot that’s worried, like parents that are very concerned about getting food for their kids and not being able to meet their demands. Many of these people have never had to rely on the food pantry before.”
Across the state in Bowling Green, the lapse in SNAP benefits couldn’t have come at a worse time for Brandy Clayton, a mother who was evicted by her roommate two weeks ago, despite being paid up for the month.
Clayton, who had been sleeping at a local park, had placed her children into her mother’s care. On Monday, she was checking into the shelter at the local Salvation Army. She hoped it would be a short stay.
“I don’t think I even need a month, just enough to get a deposit,” Clayton said. “I’m a very hard worker.”
Despite her circumstances, the young woman’s spirit shined through. Having recently lost her third-shift job, Clayton was eager to start a new one she’d found at Walmart.
“You got to want to help yourself, and I’m willing to help myself,” Clayton said. “These hard times won’t be long, you know, you just got to stay in there and get through it. Don’t break in between.”
Many new faces, application
God’s Outreach also has a food backpack program, which currently serves 3,500 children in three counties with weekend meals. That program has also received more calls from people who have never needed it, Agee said.
There were also a lot of new faces at God’s Pantry Food Bank’s pantry on Winchester Road in Lexington Monday.
Volunteers helped one man, who had never been there before, get a shopping cart and explained how the pantry worked: People can get fresh vegetables and fruit in one area. Two stand-up freezers along one wall had other vegetables and meat. There were also options for bread, canned goods and cereal.
Laura Anderson, the Fayette County God’s Pantry food coordinator, said they, too, have seen an increase in the number of people seeking initial appointments for eligibility screenings.
“It’s definitely picked up,” Anderson said.
But there is some good news. God’s Pantry and God’s Outreach have both seen a surge in donations — monetary and canned goods, Agee said.
D’Wan Carey, volunteer and food drive manager for God’s Pantry, said the organization, which serves 50 Central and Eastern Kentucky counties, has also seen both “individuals, community partners” step up with financial help and donations.
This story was originally published November 3, 2025 at 12:47 PM.
