PHILADELPHIA, PA — Soaring food and gas prices that are forcing working people to seek help to feed their families are also putting the squeeze on food banks. In these tough times, Chabad run food banks are employing creative strategies to feed those in need.
As Food Prices Soar, Chabad Food Banks Work To Meet Growing Demands
PHILADELPHIA, PA — Soaring food and gas prices that are forcing working people to seek help to feed their families are also putting the squeeze on food banks. In these tough times, Chabad run food banks are employing creative strategies to feed those in need.
Bring together 600 volunteers to pack 2450 boxes full of canned goods in 50 minutes and you get a well oiled, decibel-shattering experience. Outside Jewish Relief Agency’s warehouse on June 8, muscle bound brothers from a local fraternity are hustling boxes into trucks while tots and teens and their parents, seniors and crutch-bound school kids load still more cardboard boxes with fifteen pounds of canned tuna, potatoes, beans, noodles, pasta sauce.
Established in 2000 by Lubavitch House of Philadelphia, JRA began with three guys and a list of nineteen families in need. The list soon grew and grew. With the current economic and commodity price crunch, executive director Amy Krulik has seen the number of calls for food help rise from 15 a week to 70.
“We see a lot of people who were sitting close to the edge, able to cover their bills but barely. With gas over four dollars a gallon, they can’t make ends meet. They have to choose between getting to work and feeding their families,” said Krulik.
