MSNBC: Sagging economy producing more mouths for relief agencies to feed, drying up donations

[Amerigo Vespucci]

Economy takes harsh toll on relief agencies
Charities, food banks report less coming in to help rising number of poor

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/24186951/



The story is retold over and over: 40 percent more clients for the Salvation Army in Panama City, Fla.; 20 percent more for Urban Ministries of Raleigh, N.C.; almost 200 percent more for the Community Ministries Food Pantry in Boise, Idaho.

It’s a double whammy. At the same time that the sagging economy is producing more mouths for relief agencies to feed, it is also drying up donations to help feed them.

In Raleigh, demand is so high that the Salvation Army’s soup kitchen is in danger of running out of enough food for the day’s meals.

“We were feeding 30 to 40 people a day. Now we’re up to 170 to 180 a day,” said Helen Randolph, who has run the soup kitchen for nearly 20 years. “I used to be able to make a monthly menu, but I can’t do that anymore. I have to make a day-to-day menu.”

[Horse with no Name]

1. Something else I have noticed

the quantity and quality of the stuff at the local thrift stores is going down...and the prices are going up.
I asked about it and they said that they have to make so much money for overhead...and if the supply falls, they have to mark up the prices.
It sucks because people will really be needing to shop these stores...they won't be able to afford them either.