With SNAP benefits at risk, Sacred Heart stays flexible to serve hungry families

The Sacred Heart Food Pantry prepares for the unknown as over 4,000 Middleboro and Lakeville recipients of Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program — better known as SNAP — are still awaiting their November funds.

Due to Congress’s failure to pass funding legislation for 2026, programs such as SNAP have not recieved federal funds necessary to distribute this month's benefits to the approximately 41 million Americans who rely on assistance to feed themselves.

Two federal courts ruled the Trump administration must at least partially fund the program through a contingency fund of about $5 billion to continue the program, although this is less than the aproximately $8 billion it costs per month. An additional fund with about $23 billion could also be used. 

It remains unclear when these funds will be released, how long it will take for them to be distributed and how much families will recieve once funds are added to their cards.  

David Cunningham, director of the Sacred Heart Food Pantry in Middleboro, said he doesn’t know what to expect, but is doing his best to prepare for increased clients and higher needs for families who are currently enrolled in SNAP. 

The one thing he does know is there has been a sharp increase in the amount of people contacting the pantry looking for assistance. 

“At least half of them are mentioning the SNAP benefits issue as their reason for reaching out to us, because they don't know where their food's going to come from as of next month,” Cunningham said. “We are trying to figure out how to deal with that the best we can.”

The pantry serves clients in Middleboro, Lakeville, Rochester and Carver, including some of the 3,164 Middleboro SNAP recipients and 959 Lakeville SNAPrecipients, according to the Department of Transitional Assistance.

Two changes he plans to implement in hopes of helping more clients are increasing the food the pantry will stock each week and having more flexible hours. 

Sacred Heart is part of the Greater Boston Food Pantry, an organization that collects and distributes food to pantries, soup kitchens and other organizations fighting food insecurity. As part of this network, the pantry can order up to 5,000 pounds of food each week.

Cunningham said there are rules against stockpiling food so the pantry usually only orders about 4,500 pounds. However, with an expected increase in demand he said he plans to order the full 5,000 pounds going forward. 

Between these orders, donated items and food purchased from area grocery stores, he approximates the pantry distributes on average 35,000 pounds of food each month. 

For him and the volunteers he leads, flexibility is key. 

“We've notified our volunteers, just let them know to be flexible and that we are asking them to stay on or making adjustments to the amount of food they're used to handing out,” he said.

The pantry is open from 8:30-11 a.m. every first through fourth Saturday of the month, and the first and third Wednesday, and from 4-6:30 p.m. every second and fourth Wednesday.

It takes time to register new clients and distribute food to existing ones, so Cunningham said he plans to extend the closing time if needed to accommodate more people each day. 

He said volunteers might also have to reduce the amount of food they give each family to ensure there is enough to go around with many new clients next month. 

“If we see a huge influx we might have to cut that back a little bit just to survive, versus not running out of food and totally not being able to give anything to the person who comes in last,” he said. 

For people interested in making a donation to the pantry, Cunningham said monetary contributions are the most helpful, along with gift cards to grocery stores in smaller amounts of about $25. He said these can be spent just like SNAP cards, and also bring revenue to stores that will not receive SNAP funds this month. 

People can also donate unexpired, shelf-stable food, although he said it takes time for volunteers to inspect, sort and inventory products and financial contributions are preferred. 

Along with the Sacred Heart Food Pantry, several other pantries serve Middleboro and Lakeville. 

The Central Congregational Church’s Caring Center Food Pantry is open Mondays from  9-11:30 a.m. except for holidays. The pantry, located at 2 Webster St. in Middleboro, offers food, toiletries and other items for people in need. 

The Lakeville Council on Aging also has a small pantry for seniors, and can be reached at 508-947-7224. The council is offering patrons one gift card per month, from a grocery store of their choice.  

It is accepting monetary and gift card donations, as well as food donations. While the pantry is fully stocked with canned fruits and vegetables, it is looking for canned chicken, mayonnaise, condiments, pasta sauce and small-sized household and personal care items.