Hope for the future: Food changes lives

“I promised my daughter I’d give her a better life,” says Clara*, age 36.

For a few hard months, Clara was homeless with her baby daughter after running away from an unsafe living situation. Thankfully, today she has affordable housing and free food from The Open Door.

“Without The Open Door, it would be hard,” Clara says. “I can get groceries. I won’t be hungry.”

Free groceries help Clara save her SNAP benefit to get her baby the formula brand she needs.

For Clara, food provides more than good nutrition — it fosters hope for the future she dreams of for her daughter.

The Open Door has met a double-digit percentage increase in requests for food assistance in 2024.

“Times are hard for so many of our neighbors, and food is a basic need that does more than fuel our bodies. A good meal and a stocked refrigerator, provided with a kind smile, can be a balm for the heart too,” says President and CEO Julie LaFontaine.

For another single mom, help from the registered dietitian nutritionist at The Open Door came just in time to turn her daughter’s health around.

Georgia*, age 32, was heartbroken when she learned her daughter, age 8, has Hashimoto’s disease and was prediabetic. She worked closely with The Open Door’s registered dietitian nutritionist to help her daughter adapt to a gluten-free and lactose-free diet, identifying breakfast meals that would keep her daughter feeling full, alternatives for their favorite foods (like gluten-free tortillas), and healthy snacks for school.

After just a couple months, Georgia’s daughter is no longer prediabetic. Georgia continues to get free groceries (including otherwise costly gluten-free and lactose-free options) and even gluten-free meals from The Open Door.

“The Open Door is helping a lot of kids, a lot of mothers, and a lot of families. It takes some of the stress off of their shoulders to keep going. Our community needs help,” Georgia says.

More people, like parents Clara and Georgia, are coming to The Open Door as the cost of living continues to skyrocket.

The Open Door is serving more people now than it did during the height of COVID.

Can you help? Please consider a donation at FOODPANTRY.org.
*Names have been changed