By Doug La Rocque
According to many statistics, poverty and joblessness are near historic lows, but the Food Pantries of the Capital District say many households continue to struggle. That, according to The United Way of the Capital District, is because so many families have an income above the poverty threshold, but remain what they term as asset limited, income constrained or unemployed. This means many do not have enough food to meet basic nutritional needs.
These are called food insecure, and in Rensselaer County, the Food Pantry says 11.1% of the County’s total population fall into this category. When talking just infants and children, the number rises to 17.5%.
This is where the coalition of more than 60 food pantries comes into play, including the pantry in Grafton. They serve a wide variety of people, but find most are single parents, veterans, underemployed individuals, senior citizens, college students and babies and children of struggling families.
The pantries are always looking for more help, so they can help those in need. They remind communities, they can host food and fund drives, and for every dollar donated, 6.25 pounds of food can be provided to the hungry. All of the services are completely free.
In Grafton, the Food Pantry is located at Our Lady of the Snow Catholic Church at 31 Owen Road. It is open every Saturday from 10 am until Noon. And again, all are welcome.