U.S. Rep. Richard Neal (left) and Executive Director of the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts Andrew Morehouse (right) call on the federal government to fully fund SNAP benefits that affect millions across the country.
Reminder Publishing photo by Ryan Feyre
SPRINGFIELD — With a halt in federal funding for the supplemental nutritional assistance program leaving food insecure people scrambling to feed their themselves and their children, Springfield Mayor Domenic Sarno, Hampden County Sheriff Nick Cocchi, Bishop Talbert Swan of the NAACP and the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts have formed a coalition to keep the community fed.
The federal government is more than one month into a shutdown, a forced cessation of most nonessential operations and services that has resulted in the freezing of federally funded programs. One of the federally funded programs affected by this is the supplemental nutritional assistance program, which provides funds to help 42 million Americans adequately feed themselves and their families. Two district court judges recently ordered President Donald Trump’s administration to distribute emergency funding to SNAP recipients, as has happened during previous federal shutdowns. As of press time, the administration has not done so.
Many people experiencing food insecurity visit food pantries. Springfield is home to 53 food pantry programs, operated by nonprofits, churches and civic organizations. At a press conference on Nov. 3, Sarno said that 47% of Springfield residents receive SNAP benefits. He added, “The majority of these people, individuals and families, are working families.”
Andrew Morehouse, executive director of the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, also rejected the argument he has heard that people receiving SNAP should “get a job.” Since 1992, he said, those on SNAP who can work have been required to do so. More than 1 million of the state’s 7.1 million residents receive SNAP funding each month.
“People are struggling,” Sarno said. He shared an incident in which he was approached by an older person who told him that they were frightened and having trouble affording food and other necessities. Similarly, Springfield resident Charlie Knight said he had recently heard about a diabetic man who died after not having enough food to eat while taking insulin. He also said that he personally knows people who are skipping meals and trying to stretch their food.
To tackle the food insecurity issue and the SNAP funding crisis, Sarno said that every city department and library in Springfield is now collecting non-perishable foods and will continue to do so through Thanksgiving. “No donation is too small or too large,” he said.
The Hampden County Sheriff’s Department will oversee the coordination, connecting those donations with the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, which distributes donations to local food pantries. The Food Bank of Western Massachusetts is also taking cash donations to purchase food for these programs.
Springfield’s Health and Human Services Commissioner Helen Caulton-Harris announced the city has received a $40,000 grant from the state Department of Public Health to support programs that address food insecurity. With that funding, the city will immediately distribute that $2,500 to nine organizations and reimburse them for an additional $2,500 of food distribution and preparation costs in January 2026. The organizations benefiting from this grant are Loaves & Fishes, the Springfield Rescue Mission, Mount Zion Baptist Church, St. John’s Congregational Church, the Mobile Food Bank at Third Baptist Church, The Market at Grey House, MLK Family Services’ Emergency Food Operation, Spring of Hope Church and the Community Survival Center in Indian Orchard.
“During this time and this moment in our history, it is important for us to step up in any way we can to make sure that we are doing the best that we can for our residents. There are children, there are veterans, there are adults, there are individuals who cannot feed — I am particularly concerned about our elders,” Caulton-Harris said. “I will tell you that our elders are really frightened.”
Caulton Harris expressed pride in Springfield’s efforts to help feed the community. “There is one thing I know. When there is a crisis, we come together, and we problem solve.”
Sarno thanked Swan for working “behind the scenes.” Leslie Smith spoke on Swan’s behalf. She said, “We can’t do it alone. We need your help. We need volunteers.” She added, “Our city needs us, our community needs us, the people need us, the children need us, the elderly need us.”
State Rep. Bud Williams pointed out that before SNAP funding was halted, Springfield was in “crisis” as a “food desert” with long lines at food pantry sites throughout the city. Like the other speakers, though, he declared, “We’re going to rally. This is a matter of life and death.”
City Councilor Lavar Click-Bruce remarked, “We’re calling on everyone to be a part of the solution, whether it’s volunteering, donating or spreading the word. Your help makes a difference. Together, we will — not maybe — we will bridge the gap until every family has the support they truly deserve. And we’re going to do it with dignity, and we’re going to do it with pride.”
Discussing the hold on SNAP, the elected officials did not hold back their anger and expressed outrage with the federal government. Sarno said the SNAP crisis is a “manmade disaster,” and directing his comments to Congress, said, “You’re playing politics with people’s lives.”
Williams called out the inequalities he saw at the heart of the situation. He said, “We know how this game goes: the rich get richer, the poor get poorer and tax breaks for the rich balanced on the backs of poor people.”
Cocchi was the most direct in his excoriation of the Congress and the Trump administration. “It’s disgusting what’s happening at the federal level and quite frankly, I’m sick of it,” he said, “This political rhetoric has got to go. People are going to die. Here’s a message to Washington, get your act together. Enough’s enough. Get off your podium, get off your political beliefs and bring humanity back to the job that you took an oath, and you swore to uphold.”
Neal reaction
At a later press conference inside the Food Bank of Western Massachusetts, U.S. Rep. Richard Neal reaffirmed that it is important President Donald Trump utilizes contingency reserve dollars from the U.S. Department of Agriculture to fund SNAP during the government shutdown. He and his 213 Democratic colleagues sent a letter to USDA Secretary Brooke Rollins prior to the lapse in funding.
According to an AP News report, there is $5 billion in that contingency fund that can be used for the program.
“This is not something we should be arguing about,” Neal said. “The food supply should be ready, and the money, which can be electronically deposited, is there. It should be allocated.”
As of press time, the Trump administration said that it would use emergency funding to cover 50% of eligible households’ current allotments for Americans who receive the food stamps, but according to Neal’s office, the exact amount that will be delivered to each beneficiary, and the timeline on which those benefits will be delivered, remain unclear.
“Congress is fully capable of turning the lights back on and getting these dollars out the door to people who need them,” Neal said.
Following the Trump administration’s announcement, Morehouse called on the Healey administration to cover the other 50% of SNAP benefits so people in the area don’t go hungry.
He also called the federal government’s decision to cut the benefits “cruel,” especially in a world where the food Bank is already providing 1.2 million meals every month to 124,000 people in the region.
Morehouse shared that that number will likely climb as the holiday season approaches.
“Fifty percent is helpful,” Morehouse said of the Trump administration’s recent decision. “But that doesn’t mean that people will be able to put enough food on their table the other 15 days of the month of November.”
While the Food Bank awaits future help, Morehouse said they continue to fill the gap where they need too. As more emails and phone calls from worried residents come through, the Food Bank is already providing more food to the 199 pantries and meal sites across the four Western Mass. counties, according to Morehouse.
He encouraged people to visit the Food Bank website to donate if they can and learn more about the work they are doing.
“All we’re asking is the federal government, and as necessary, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, to do the right thing. and make sure that people who need SNAP benefits, who can rely on them at this moment in time, receive them.”
