Tempe food banks and other food distributors said donations have decreased by about half over the summer as the demand for food by needy families has increased.
“With gas prices and house foreclosures, it just creates a domino effect,” Salvation Army social services coordinator George Eastlick said.
The Salvation Army distributes food out of its office at Myrtle Avenue and University Drive. Eastlick said the amount of food donated per week had dropped drastically in the last few months.
“This week we got eight boxes [of canned food], about 50 pounds,” Eastlick said. “We used to average about 16 [boxes].”
Tempe food banks said they were not having much luck either. Monica Cagle is the food-bank supervisor at the Tempe Community Action Agency, a nonprofit organization that has worked in Tempe for over 40 years.
Cagle blames the economy and rising gas prices for not only a drop in food donations, but also an increase in the need for food from working class and low-income families.
“Right now, we see the trend across the U.S.,” Cagle said. “Food donations are down. With the economy being what it is, people are tightening up.”
Eastlick said the drop in donations has made the economic crisis faced by many families even worse.
“We are seeing a lot of new clients,” Eastlick said. “Even the middle-income families are coming now … and a lot of our donors are seeing themselves in the same situation. They are not donating like they were before.”
Anthropology freshman Alicia Dinsmore said a campus food drive could help families in need and bring attention to the crisis faced by most food banks.
“I think a food drive would help spread awareness,” Dinsmore said. “I wasn’t aware of the problem, and I’m sure most students aren’t either.”
ASU has always been a good source of donations, through numerous food drives held three or four times a year, Eastlick said. Last month, the College of Human Services at the West campus donated about 420 pounds of food to a Salvation Army location in the West Valley.
Eastlick said he hoped to see more involvement from the school now that the need is greater than ever.
Cagle said a small contribution from a high number of students would help tremendously.
“If a lot of people do a little, it goes a very long way,” Cagle said.
Eastlick added, “Everyone is suffering, but do not forget the poor.”
Reach the reporter at derek.quizon@asu.edu.
