People who receive food from the local nonprofit Nourishing Bethesda received the makings of a Thanksgiving feast Friday, along with their regular biweekly meal allocation.
“It helps a lot,” said Dennis of Bethesda. He has been receiving healthy, nutritious food at the pantry for the past year since returning home from the hospital following triple bypass surgery. “Every little bit of stuff helps,” he said as he rearranged his bags piled high with fruits, vegetables, chicken, breads and pie.
Claudia, of Gaithersburg, agreed. “It’s very, very important,” said the mother of three. “I use everything. I really am appreciative.”
Last year, Nourishing Bethesda volunteers enabled 750 people to have healthy meals and one less thing to worry about. This year, they have already provided food for 1,000 clients, said Tammi Houton, deputy director. She pointed to the recent government shutdown and federal layoffs for the increase in people who are food insecure.
Most of the clients have jobs but can’t make ends meet, she said. For example, many new clients are nurses at the nearby Walter Reed hospital, she noted.
Much of the food they distribute comes from area grocers. Nourishing Bethesda volunteers pick up the food that the stores rotate out when new shipments come in, Houton explained.
The Thanksgiving extras were donated by multiple religious groups, including Islamic Relief USA, which provided 1,000 turkeys. Houton estimated the value of the Thanksgiving meal at $35 per family.
On this occasion, U.S. Sen. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md., stopped by to thank Nourishing Bethesda volunteers and to help hand out food.
“I want to support this great organization, Nourishing Bethesda, and all of the organizations that are helping feed people who are hungry,” Van Holland said.
Although the shutdown has ended, cuts in SNAP and Medicare benefits continue, he said.
“It just goes to show how deep the issue of hunger goes. This is a relatively well-off area, but you still have long lines of cars coming,” he said of Bethesda.
Van Hollen said the federal government’s decision to mandate that some recipients work a certain number of hours to be eligible for benefits “really is not designed to encourage people to work. What it is it is designed to do is deny people benefits by making people go through all sorts of hoops.”
The food pantry is open every Thursday and Friday. It also delivers to area schools, homeless shelters and low-income housing apartments.
Clients choose from shelves of fresh fruits and vegetables, bread, canned goods, chicken and dairy products. The amount they are permitted to take depends on the number of people in their family. Nourishing Bethesda does not verify the income of the people they serve, said John Ross, founder and executive director of the the food pantry.
“So many of our clients live in scarcity. This is a time when we should be celebrating abundance,” said Ross.
The Trump administration’s actions have increased the number of Nourishing Bethesda’s clients by 20-25%, said Ross. “I compare it to a tidal wave.”
“[In Bethesda] we see parents who are not eating because they want to feed their kids,” he said. “We are giving them hope, not just calories.”
Editorial Note: The people interviewed in this article who received meals from Nourishing Bethesda requested their last names not be used due to the nature of their involvement with the organization.
