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Volunteers from St. John's Episcopal Church in Bethesda help hand out food to a local resident at an event earlier this month.
Volunteers from St. John's Episcopal Church in Bethesda help hand out food to a local resident at an event earlier this month.
Xueying Chang/NPR
An hour before the food distribution event began in Bethesda, Md., on a recent Friday, a long line of cars was already winding through the parking lot.
Volunteers from St. John's Episcopal Church worked to unpack boxes of bread, prepared meals and coffee — enough for the first 200 people to arrive. Nourish Now, a Maryland-based nonprofit food bank, provides food for the weekly events.
Waiting in his car, Peter Warner was sure to arrive early this time. Last week, the group ran out of meals within a half hour.
"I was fortunate to get a spot, and they had almost run out of food 20 minutes after the starting bell," he said. "Anyone who got here after 1:30 p.m. was totally out of luck."
Nearly all of the people who had lined up for those meals said they lacked reliable access to safe, nutritious food as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
Since March, food insecurity has grown throughout the U.S., including in Montgomery County, one of the wealthiest counties in the country.
Before the pandemic, in the U.S. were unable to get enough food or were uncertain where their next meal might come from. That number is projected to go up by at least 17 million for this year, according to the nonprofit Feeding America; researchers at Northwestern University say food insecurity has actually doubled from before the pandemic.
In Montgomery County, Feeding America projects food insecurity to go up from 8% in 2018 to 13% this year.
Warner relies on a $1,000 monthly disability check for all of his expenses, including food and shelter.
"I also am now getting $194 a month in SNAP food stamps, which is invaluable," he said, but it wasn't quite enough to cover his food for this month. "Today is the 18th, my food stamp award comes in on the 22nd — I have to eat for the next four days."
The line of cars eventually spilled into the busy street outside the parking lot of the Bethesda-Chevy Chase Rescue Squad, a volunteer firefighting group that loaned out its space for the event.
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Drivers line up to receive food distribution in Bethesda. Food insecurity has increased in Montgomery County since the start of the pandemic.
Drivers line up to receive food distribution in Bethesda. Food insecurity has increased in Montgomery County since the start of the pandemic.
Xueying Chang/NPR
For some, being food insecure is a source of shame. Many of the people in line didn't want to provide their last names.
Linda, who was laid off from her housekeeping job in May, hoped to pick up food for her daughter and five grandchildren.
Her unemployment application hasn't gotten approved yet, and five months without work or any financial aid is taking its toll.
"It's too difficult really — I'm struggling," she said. "I hope the pandemic, it's finished soon. It's so difficult, but we are still blessed to have somebody to provide some food for us."
Adam and his wife, parents of two children, are both collecting unemployment and seeking food assistance for the first time in their lives, after they were each furloughed in March.
"Any little bit helps now, because you never know what's going to happen tomorrow, or the next day, so it's good just to be prepared because you never know how long this is going to last," he said.
