For years, you've seen the green Food for Families barrels at the grocery check-out line or heard Salvation Army bell ringers near every mall entrance. They've become an annual tradition synonymous with cold weather, Thanksgiving feasts and holiday giving.
Private donations feed an intricate system of food banks, pantries and meal programs. But in an economy plagued by layoffs, rising food costs and wage freezes, the call for food and funding is just a little bit louder.
There's consensus among every food bank, pantry and meal program in the area that the need is greater than ever before.
"We've been here for 31 years and it's been the highest demand we've ever had," said Michael Zirbel, associate director of the Food Pantry of Waukesha County. "Last month alone, we had 7,000 people come through; our highest month ever, and November is on pace to beat that."
The Rescue Mission, located at 830 N. 19th St., in the heart of central Milwaukee, serves three meals a day to men, women and children in its two shelters.
"In our men's shelter, individuals we're serving in the food program are up by about 11 percent," said executive director Pat Vanderburg. "We aren't seeing a statistical increase in the family programs, more or less because we are absolutely stock full and have been for quite some time."
Milwaukee relies on two large food banks, Feeding America (formerly named America's Second Harvest), 1700 W. Fond du Lac Ave., and Hunger Task Force, 201 S. Hawley Ct., to provide food in bulk to dozens of smaller pantries and meal programs throughout the area. Receiving both private donations and government commodities, these two organizations send out tons of food every year.
"Need was at an all time high this past August when we had 51,000 (people) looking for emergency food," said Sherrie Tussler, executive director of Hunger Task Force. "Our soup kitchen and homeless shelter numbers are different because those are hot meals served every month; we see about 60,000 to 70,000 people every month."
Overall, Hunger Task Force has seen a 30 percent increase in demand for emergency food. Serving 60 emergency pantries and 20 shelters, Hunger Task Force provides monthly or biweekly deliveries based on storage capabilities and the number of clients served in the prior month.
"We look at the numbers every day at this point because we're so donor dependent. We're about $4,000 ahead of last year at this time and about 20,000 pounds of food down. We did a pantry survey in September because of the high numbers in August and the response was that 38 percent of people were newly unemployed," Tussler said.
Across the board, programs like those at the Salvation Army or the Food Pantry of Waukesha County are finding the need is up and showing no signs of slowing. These smaller programs receive food from both private donations and food banks like the Hunger Task Force or Feeding America, to provide supplemental food or hot meals directly to area residents.
"There's more food coming from Hunger Task Force but the demand on the food has greatly increased," Harold Madlom of the Salvation Army explained. "In 2007, we saw just over 11,000 clients, and in 2008, it was about 14,000. We're going to go past that amount to greater than 15,000 this year. The need keeps climbing up and up."
The "needy" Milwaukeean now also has a very different face. Hundreds of new families and individuals are finding themselves suddenly unemployed and struggling to put food on the table.
"Some who have previously donated food are now on the receiving end of the donations," said Dawn Albrecht, communications associate for Feeding America. "People who never thought they would have to ask for help are visiting food pantries for the first time, trying to make ends meet during this difficult economy."
Pantries are noticing that the geographic location of families in need is changing, too.
"I think people assume it's the city of Milwaukee, but they should pay attention to places like Cudahy or West Milwaukee," Tussler said. "As people migrate away from the central city, they're heading into these communities. On the near North Side we're seeing a migration. Think about how much areas like King Drive have gentrified. These people move northwest towards Menomonee Falls."
Likewise, the Food Pantry of Waukesha County, 215 W. North St., is often dismissed; stereotyped by the notion that Waukesha County is one of the wealthiest counties in the state.
"We serve the entire Waukesha County," said Zirbel. "People think of Waukesha and think of Delafield, but Waukesha County is a huge area with a lot of working people who are struggling; working in jobs that don't necessarily pay enough to keep a family healthy."
This is where donations, be it coins in the red kettle, non-perishable food items or cash play a role.
"Donations this year are comparable to donations we received in 2008; however, the need is outpacing donations," said Albrecht. "With the downturn in the economy and the rise in unemployment, we have seen the demand for food across eastern Wisconsin increase 22 percent over last year."
"Luckily last year, we were able to keep up. But, we had some government funding that we're not seeing this year. It was really obvious a year ago in September," Tussler said.
"Normally we have high numbers in August because school is not back in session but summer school and recreation programs stop, so hunger is really high, especially for kids. But, then in September numbers tend to go back down. But last September, we were still filling emergency orders for a quarter of our network. The level increased to about 38,000 people and stayed pretty much like that until summer this year where we were at 51,000 clients. So we're still seeing 10,000 more people per month who need to hit a pantry."
OnMilwaukee.com staff writer Maureen Post grew up in Wauwatosa. A lover of international and urban culture, Maureen received a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
After living on the east side of Madison for several years, Maureen returned to Milwaukee in 2006.
After a brief stint of travel, Maureen joined OnMilwaukee.com as the city’s oldest intern and has been hooked ever since. Combining her three key infatuations, Milwaukee’s great music, incredible food and inspiring art (and yes, in that order), Maureen’s job just about fits her perfectly.
Residing in Bay View, Maureen vehemently believes the city can become fresh and new with a simple move across town.
