Meet Eloise

Eloise, a friendly woman in her early 60s, waved as she was waiting in line. She had some questions about the government shutdown and how she would be impacted. “I'm one of the ones to get food stamps. I’m going to depend on the Connecticut Foodshare truck...so I can get a meal. It’s so expensive in the grocery store, sometimes you just have to say – do I get the meat or do I get the vegetables? You have got to make a choice. With the cutbacks now, a lot of people are going to suffer. I mean, a lot of us are going to suffer.”

We assured her that Connecticut Foodshare mobile trucks would still deliver the fresh, healthy food she relied on, regardless of the government shutdown. We also let her know that extra food like tuna, macaroni and cheese, some limited meat items and dairy would be on the trucks as long as SNAP benefits were frozen. Her face visibly relaxed and she smiled.

“I really appreciate it. I am so grateful. They just welcomed me. Every little bit of it helps, it cuts down on my food bill a lot.”

Access to this bi-weekly free food resource means there are fewer harsh choices Eloise will have to make, and that’s critical as she has some serious medical conditions and needs to take care of her health.

“I could take that money that I was going to use on the vegetables – I can get some meat, you know, medicine. I just had two open heart surgeries. Fresh vegetables and stuff help. I didn't know the struggle until I got sick.”

Eloise is one of many who count on the fresh food from the mobile pantry. During a recent program evaluation, over 93% of mobile visitors who were asked said fresh produce was what they come to the mobile pantry for. Last year, Connecticut Foodshare distributed more than 5 million meals through this vital resource, and nearly 70% of it was vegetables and fruits.

“It's a blessing. The volunteers are wonderful. They make sure you get help. I can't say enough...I'm grateful.”