COMMERCE CITY, Colo. — Twice a month, Denver resident Crystal Castaneda makes the drive to Dick’s Sporting Goods Park. There, she joins the rows of cars in line for the Food Bank of the Rockies’s mobile food pantry. As a family of five living in a time of inflation, she said, the extra help is a blessing.
"Sometimes the money can be tight,” she told Denver7. “It's helped so much.”
New USDA data reveals a troubling rise in food insecurity, with 47 million people in the U.S. now affected — the highest rate since 2014.
This echoes what Food Bank of the Rockies is experiencing, as a growing number of people are seeking help at its mobile pantries and partner locations.
“These are neighbors who are otherwise having to make really tough choices — like paying essential bills, like a medical expense or car repair, or being able to put food on the table for their families,” said Food Bank of the Rockies CEO Erin Pulling.
One in nine Coloradans are experiencing food insecurity, putting an additional strain on the organization.
Pulling attributes the rise in need to the end of pandemic-era support for families and organizations.
National
Pandemic-era SNAP benefits end as millions face rising costs
While the food bank receives most of its food donations from retailers, manufacturers, and agricultural partners, Pulling said the organization is having to buy an additional 25-30% of its supply.
“I mean, we're purchasing about 10 truckloads of food every single week to supplement all the donated food,” she said.
Denver7 is taking action on this issue – and we need your help. Join us for 7 Days to Help End Hunger. From Sept. 23-29, this week-long campaign will raise crucial funds to support the Food Bank of the Rockies and the work they do to nourish people facing hunger.
“We're depending on those gifts to get nutritious food out to families who are otherwise making — having to make — choices that none of us should have to make,” said Pulling.
“We feel very grateful, very blessed that there's communities like this that look out after like all of us, because without it, I don't know what we would do. We'd be, like, struggling to the max. So I feel very grateful for these opportunities,” Castaneda said.
Community
Join Denver7 for 7 Days to Help End Hunger
Every dollar contributed will help Food Bank of the Rockies meet this moment as they are distributing enough food every day for 179,000 meals. But because of rising food costs, they’re spending triple what they have spent in the past on purchasing nutritious items.
Your support is needed. Together, we can make a difference in our community.
With the dollar-for-dollar match from Denver7 Gives, here’s what your support will provide:
- $25 will help the Food Bank of the Rockies distribute enough food for 150 meals
- $50 provides 300 meals
- $100 provides 600 meals
- $250 provides 1,500 meals
- $500 provides 3,000 meals
7 Days to Help End Hunger is sponsored by CommonSpirit.
Click here and select "7 Days to Help End Hunger" to donate today or use the form at the bottom of this article.
Denver7 is committed to making a difference in our community by standing up for what's right, listening, lending a helping hand and following through on promises. See that work in action, in the videos above.