Officials with Cypress Assistance Ministries reported a 450% increase in the number of people seeking assistance from the nonprofit’s food pantry this week, citing a rise in unemployment during the coronavirus pandemic.
“Many families who were financially stable have now seen the reduction of or loss of one or more household paychecks, leaving them unable to cover basic necessities. Unemployment payment will kick in and that will help, but having enough right now means asking others for help. And recovering from this kind of loss will require financial assistance as well,” Director of Development Janet Ryan said in a press release. “The large majority of people coming to CAM’s Food Pantry are new faces. They are people who were self-sufficient until this unexpected and unprecedented time. Truly anyone can fall on hard times.”
Due to a significant increase in traffic, CAM has modified operating hours at the food pantry at 11265 Huffmeister Road, Houston, to allow an additional day for volunteers to focus on sorting donations and packing boxes of food. Those needing assistance can now access the drive-thru food pantry from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. Monday through Thursday.
“The demand is simply more than we can keep up with unless we again modify the hours,” Ryan said. “And volunteers are very much needed, so if you are not in a high-risk group, please consider giving of your time.”
