Dial 211 For Help Finding Food when Money is Tight

Over the past eight years or so, it has become increasingly difficult to "put food on your family" in the United States of America. This is not just true for bums and ne'er do wells. It is becoming more and more true for double income families. I know that, for me, in the past year procuring food had become a problem. I may be a single gal who doesn't need much, but I can tell you that trying to buy a week's worth of groceries for under $20 is darn near impossible - even for me! Here are a few things that I have done to help fill the gaps in my bare cupboards.

Before Christmas, I arrived at a point of needing help with utility bills and with food. My gas company had advised me to call 211 - the national number for assistance referrals, and I had been trying in vain for a couple of months. The number is busy day and night. Then I suddenly hit upon the idea of Googling 211. That is the way to go! It is much better to look it up online than to call. You can find all the referrals you need on their website.

http://www.informationandreferral.org/

Once there, I quickly located services in my area and made a few local phone calls to find services that could help me with utility bills and with food. Within a couple of hours, I had my tardy electric bill taken care of and was on my way home from my Interfaith Ministries referral with two bags of greatly needed groceries and an welcome invitation to come back and volunteer. The fact that I now had my food needs taken care of for awhile made it possible for me to pay something toward my gas bill, thereby diverting a very cold Christmas. This was all a tremendous relief.

That was a couple of days before Christmas. Since that time, my income has stabilized a bit, and I have located another wonderful food resource that is available to everyone, regardless of income. It is Angel Food Ministries. This is a program that operates through many churches. With Angel Food you can purchase high quality food for half price or less. They offer a big combination box for $25 that includes quite a bit of nice frozen meat, boxed milk, frozen veggies, dry beans, rice, a carton of eggs, and a few pieces of fruit, a dessert, and more.

They also offer a number of specialty boxes that have equally good choices that are more specific. I usually get the fresh fruit and veggie box every month for $21. It usually includes a 3 lb bag of potatoes, a 3 lb bag of sweet potatoes, a bag of oranges or apples, a cabbage, a small bag of carrots, a small bag of onions, and some specialty items like fresh garlic, a pineapple, or a mango. I get the combination box every two months because it is much more food than I need in a month. You order your boxes a month in advance and pay for them, then go to the church and pick them up on the specified day. The fact that I am able to get my food needs pretty much taken care of with this single, affordable monthly purchase is a tremendous help to me.

You don't have to be a church member to get food through Angel Food, and you don't have to be poor. Lots of people participate in Angel Food because it is such a good deal. One of the women at the church where I get my Angel Food boxes says she feeds her family of five for a month on two combination boxes. Hers is a two income family.

To find out more about Angel Food Ministries visit: http://www.angelfoodministries.com/
You can have a look at the menu for this month and find a location near you along with contact information. This is a great program that really helps people and is beneficial to the sponsoring churches.